Samurai In Harwood County
by Lily Hanson
Summary: The Samurai thought they had finished off all the Nighlok. They thought it was safe to put their Ranger duties behind them. One Nighlok comes back to show them that the war isn't over yet. The Samurai are going to need help from the Megaforce Rangers to ensure the end of the Nighlok.
1. Squid

_Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers Megaforce. This story is fan-made._

_Author's Note: This is not where the Megaforce series starts. If you want to read the series without getting lost, I suggest you read my stories in the order they appear:_

_**No To Date Nights - The Party Night - Project Partners - Megaforce: Lives Behind The Masks - **__**Prom Night**__ - __**A Trip To Remember - First Meetings - Something She Loves – Protective Morans**_

Emma carried a stack of wood in her arms. She had gathered logs and sticks from the forest to bring back to camp so she and the Rangers would have a fire to keep warm. It was the summer, but at night the temperate did drop quite a bit, making the air cool. Plus, it was fun to have a campfire.

The idea was Troy's. Now that it was summer time, the Rangers were off school. They had more time to train and were taking advantage of that, but even with the extra hours of training they still had plenty of time and nothing to fill it with. Troy thought a Ranger camping weekend would be fun.

Emma was all for it. She remembered camping with the Morans as a child. As long as she could bring her camera and her bike with her she was completely at home in the woods. The smell of pine brought back memories from her childhood that were fun and warm.

Jake was into the idea as well. He and his dad were looking for places to live so they could get out of the hotel room they were staying in and his father was also filing for a divorce. Though Jake did try to stay out of his parents' affair as much as possible, it was obvious he was siding with his father. This angered his mother, who was already upset she was losing her husband. She made it very clear she would fight to the bitter end to get sole custody of Jake. In other words, his home life was pretty messy, so Jake was glad to be able to get away for a weekend. And even though his father had reminded him many times not to forget his cell phone, Jake had purposely left it in his nightstand drawer. He didn't want anything to ruin this weekend away.

Gia wasn't as interested in camping as Emma, and didn't have a real reason to get out of the house like Jake, but she was glad Troy had suggested the camping idea. She knew home for Jake wasn't a fun place and so seeing him happy as he tried to pitch the tent made the trip worth it. She also didn't have anything against camping. Her memories from camping as a child were the same as Emma's. They had always had a good time back then. Surely this would be no different.

Jordan would go anywhere Emma went. He was glued to her hip as he tried desperately to make up for lost time. He had promised to spend as much time with her as possible over the summer, and had dedicated every hour he wasn't sleeping or in his art class to being with his girlfriend. Emma was happy for it, too. Her spirits had been lifted since Jordan had come home.

Noah was the only one completely out of his element. While Gia and Emma worked on getting a fire started, and Troy, Jordan, and Jake got the tent set up before nightfall, Noah sat on a log with his computer.

"There's absolutely no wifi out here," Noah complained and looked up to the sky. "How am I supposed to get any work done?"

Jake simply rolled his eyes. He was used to hearing Noah complain whenever there was no internet. Noah was only interested in the great outdoors if he was working on a science project or if he was outdoors inside a video game. Any other case made Noah a little crabby.

"Work?" Emma looked up from the fire pit and chuckled, "Noah, we're camping. You don't need your laptop. If you want to work, there's plenty you can do to help set up."

"No thank you," Noah muttered and then he slapped the back of his neck. Right after that, he smacked his arm, "Damn bugs!"

"Don't kill them!" Emma rolled her eyes. "Besides, you're wearing the wrong colour. Insects are attracted to the colour blue."

"If they don't want to be killed, they should stay away from me," Noah muttered and slapped his arm one more time. He got the kill and showed it off to Emma. He knew it would bother her, but he was too crabby to care.

Emma smacked his arm away, "I've got some bug repellent you can borrow in my bag."

Noah reached over and took Emma's bag. He dug around inside until he found a bottle. He pulled it out and took a sniff, "Citrus?"

"Bugs hate the smell. It'll keep them away. And there's no chemicals."

"I've got real bug repellent in my bag if that doesn't work," Gia said. Emma shot her a glare. She turned back to the fire pit, "But uh… try Emma's first…"

"No wifi and the bugs are getting at me," Noah muttered. He set the bottle of lemon juice down beside him and then looked back at his laptop, "Aw man, and my battery is about to die. Is there anywhere I can plug in my laptop, I…"

"Do you see an outlet?" Jake asked with a laugh before he turned to the rest of his teammates, "This is why I never go camping with him. He's impossible."

"Noah, why don't you help me collect some more wood for the fire?" Gia suggested. Emma knew what she was doing with the fire, and didn't need any help to get a flame started. Once the fire was ready to go the Rangers were going to need enough wood to keep it burning until they wanted to go to sleep and no one wanted to walk around in the dark.

"Well, if there's nothing else to do," Noah said. He put his laptop away in his bag and then got up. He felt lighter as he walked and left his bag at the campsite. On this trip, his computer was going to be useless to him.

"You think techno-geek would know there's no internet in the woods," Jordan chuckled as he finally got his part of the tent to stand up straight. Now all he needed was a way to keep it up. As he struggled to reach for a pole, he looked over at Emma, "I'm sure you'll show him there's more to the great outdoors than what he can see from a laptop screen."

"We have an exciting day planned for tomorrow," Emma nodded her head and smiled. "You guys are going to love it."

"I can't wait," Jordan said. He looked over and saw Troy already had his section of the tent standing and he was now helping Jake. He frowned. "Dude, how did you do that?"

-Megaforce-

Out in the woods, Gia was showing Noah the best kinds of sticks to gather for the campfire. The smaller ones she told him were great for getting a fire started and helping the wood to burn, while the bigger logs were used to keep the fire going for a long time. Because the smaller sticks would burn a lot faster than the bigger logs, they needed a lot more of them.

"Don't break the branches off the trees," Gia advised Noah when she saw he was reaching up into the trees to snap off a branch, "There's plenty that have fallen to the ground already. Use those."

"Emma, right?" Noah looked up with a little chuckle. Gia sighed and nodded her head.

"Great, now she's got me doing it too."

"So, what is there really to do out here?" Noah asked as he picked up a few sticks and had a look around. Gia shrugged her shoulders.

"Anything, really. When Emma and I were younger, we used to climb the trees. She would get some pretty cool pictures. I just loved to climb."

"I don't really have the upper body strength to climb trees," Noah looked at his arms with a little frown.

"You've bulked up a bit since this Ranger thing started," Gia smirked.

"Not enough to enjoy climbing trees. What else is there to do?"

"There's a good fishing stream not too far from here. As long as we release the fish we catch, it should be okay."

"Fishing? I've done that before."

"Really?"

"Yeah, on my Wii. My dad bought a fishing game so we could… what?" Noah asked when he saw Gia was shaking her head. "Did I say something?"

"Your Wii is nothing like real life. Have you ever played any real sport?"

"Sometimes Jake makes me be goalie when he practices. Besides, Wii can be exhausting. That counts as a sport, right?"

"No."

"But…"

"Have you ever gone hiking?"

"Gia, if I wanted to see the view, I'd Google images on my laptop."

"You're hopeless," Gia shook her head. She bent over to pick up a stick but noticed something red on the ground. She furrowed her brows and called Noah over. When she pointed to the red liquid, Noah knelt to get a closer look.

"This is odd."

"It looks like blood to me," Gia said. She used the stick she was going to take back for firewood and put it in the puddle. To her surprise, the stick began to burn. She dropped it, jumped back, and looked at Noah.

"Blood doesn't do that," Noah said. He picked up the stick, which hadn't burned all the way, and stirred the liquid to see what would happen. Gia approached the puddle again. She grabbed a new stick – a long one – and stuck it into the puddle.

"Wait," she grabbed Noah's arm, "I recognize this stuff. A couple years ago Emma did a project Panorama City and how the way against the monsters was affecting the environment. Almost every one of the articles she read mentioned this freaky red water. They called it hell water because if you touch it, it burns."

"Hell water? Do you think it's got anything to do with the monsters the Samurai Rangers fought?" Noah asked. Gia shrugged her shoulders as she reached into her jacket pocket to grab her phone.

"Serena would know. I can give her a… what?" Gia asked when she saw Noah's face turn pale. He started to fumble as he searched his pockets for his morpher, only to remember he kept it in his laptop bag. Gia looked over her shoulder to see what Noah saw. She rolled her eyes. It seemed like a mutant had decided to crash the camping trip.

"Why am I not surprised the toxic waste has gotten into the ocean?" she grumbled and reached for her pocket, but made the same mistake as Noah. She too kept her morpher inside her bag, which she had left at the campsite. She looked back at Noah, "Alright, so what do you know about squid?"

"That's not a mutant," Noah whispered to Gia as he stood up straight. "That's one of the Samurai Ranger's monsters. Troy's mentioned something about squid in his dreams."

"Moogers!"

Suddenly, hundreds of Moogers surrounded the unmorphed blue and yellow Rangers which made it impossible for the two of them to run to the others for help.

"We're going to have to fight," Gia said.

"But they have swords!"

"Yeah, avoid the pointy ends!"


	2. Surprise Samurai

Jordan finally got his side of the tent up after a little help from Jake and Troy. The Rangers officially had something to sleep under other than the stars. Though it would be romantic to share a sleeping bag and stare up at the stars with Emma all night, Jordan did like the feeling of safety the tent had to offer. He wasn't sure if the weather would stay nice all weekend.

To top it off, Emma had gotten a nice fire started and was making dinner for the team. Jordan could smell it and he was starving. He was sure the tent wouldn't fall over so he walked over to his girlfriend.

"Smells good. What are we having?"

"Toasted sandwiches," Emma answered as she flipped a sandwich over. "You're probably going to fill up on s'mores later, so I didn't really want to make too much."

"Yeah, I can't really deny that one," Jordan smirked as he turned to look at the bag of treats that Jake had brought along. His father had helped him pack for the camping trip, and it seemed Mr. Holling believed the kids needed to fill up on junk food. No one could argue with him.

"As soon as Noah and Gia get back, we can eat," Emma told her boyfriend. "Why don't you help the others get everything inside the tent?"

"It's not going to cave in on us tonight," Jordan said proudly. Emma chuckled at Jordan's pride. It wasn't misplaced. The tent did look very sturdy.

As Jordan walked to the van to help the boys unpack everything, he noticed something moving in the bushes. Noah and Gia emerged without the sticks they had promised to bring home.

"Hey guys, I thought you were getting firewood," Jordan said as he took out the sleeping bags from the trunk. Gia and Noah didn't say anything. Instead, Noah went to his laptop bag and Gia walked to the car. She searched the back seats for her bag.

"Did something happen?" Troy asked. Neither answered. Noah snatched up his bag and dug through it aggressively until he found what he wanted. Then he turned to the van. He saw Gia had found her bag, and as soon as she pulled out what she wanted, she turned to him and nodded her head.

"Guys, is everything okay?" Jake nervously approached Gia, sensing there was something about her that wasn't quite right. He reached out to touch her arm, but in a flash she was morphed with her Tiger Claw. She brought it up and smashed it into the side of Jake's head.

"Gia!" Emma cried. She left the sandwiches to focus on her best friend. Gia was tough, and had on occasion raised her fist when a boy tried to take things too far, but she would never hurt Jake. There was something wrong.

"Don't move," Noah said and Emma and the boys turned around to see he was also morphed with his Shark Bowgun pointed at the group.

"Keep them there," Gia instructed Noah as she knelt by Jake's fallen body and reached into his sweater. He only insisted on wearing the extra layer over the summer because it had a pocket that was just big enough to carry his morpher. She grabbed it off of him, and then looked up at Troy. She held her hand out.

"You know what I want."

"What happened?" Troy asked as he looked at Gia and Noah. Of everyone, he considered them to be the last two people to turn on the team. Though he trusted all the Rangers with his lives, he had had stress dreams were Emma was fed up with the way humans were treating the Earth and she sided with the mutants to wipe them all out. And he even had a few dreams where Jake would decide he wanted fame and power and broke away from the Rangers to work solo – which eventually led him down a dark path. Though the dreams were a little ridiculous when he woke up, they were, even just a little bit, plausible.

He had never had those dreams about Gia or Noah. Perhaps they were coming, but Troy knew his team well. Gia was his second in command and she took the role very seriously. Though Troy did worry she would one day snap on some man who decided to mess with her, he knew she would protect her team until her dying breath. Emma was her best friend, Jake had proven to be special to her, and Noah and Troy had both played a part in showing her that there were still good guys in the world. They meant something important to her. Something darkness couldn't touch.

Noah, on the other hand, was as loyal as he was smart. Though he was sometimes a little awkward socially, and couldn't understand how dating worked to save his life, he was a good person with good intentions. He always tried his very best to help his teammates and he had learned that being a hero didn't mean he needed to be strong. It was a difference between him and Jake that was likely why Troy had had betrayal dreams about Jake and not Noah. The blue Ranger knew he wasn't strong or powerful. He had lost in arm wrestling against Emma, and couldn't even beat her at the thumb wrestling tournament afterwards. It had disappointed him, but he had learned power wasn't everything, and it certainly wasn't for him. He was content being a team member. He was content with his face hidden and his identity concealed. Even if it meant he never got rewarded for his good deeds, all he wanted was to do good and help people. Darkness couldn't corrupt Noah.

"None of your business," Gia said to Troy and stepped a little closer, "Hand it over."

"You want my morpher, you have to go through me," Troy backed up until he was close to his bag and then he took the device out. He morphed to level the playing ground between himself and Gia. The yellow Ranger was tough, he knew that, but he was still the better fighter. The odds were in his favour.

Until Gia lunged at him, and Troy felt his body freeze up. He didn't want to fight a friend. He didn't want to hurt Gia. He wasn't sure what had happened to her or to Noah and he couldn't put them in harm's way until he found out. He defended himself, but that was all he could do.

Jordan ran and ducked behind the trees. He wasn't stupid. The Rangers had turned on each other, and without any means of protection, he was completely vulnerable. Though he wanted to keep Emma safe, it was best for everyone if he stepped aside and let the Rangers handle the problem. Best case scenario was that Emma and Troy could pull off a win. Worse come to worse, Jordan hoped Noah and Gia would forget about him after they beat up the pink and red Rangers bad enough to get what they wanted, and Jordan would stick around to help after they left.

He watched as Troy and Gia battled, but not for too long. Noah decided to take the fight into his own hands and had attacked Emma. Jordan's stomach turned when he saw Emma had the same reservations about fighting as Troy. She didn't _want_ to hurt her teammate.

She jumped up into the trees to avoid being hit by a blast from his Bowgun, and then took a shot herself, firing at the blue Ranger's feet with her Phoenix shot.

"Noah, stop this!" she cried and then turned to the battle between Gia and Troy, worried for her best friend. She took her eyes off Noah for a second too long. He shot at the branch she was standing on which caused her to fall to the ground hard. Noah walked to her and kicked her in the ribs. When she powered down, he collected her morpher.

"Too easy," he scoffed. He looked over at Gia. She had the red Ranger on his back and her foot on his stomach. Troy refused to give up so easily. Unfortunately, that meant he had to try.

"I'm sorry," he said as he summoned his sword. He swung at Gia and hit her in the leg. She fell over and he jumped on top of her. Just as he pinned her down, he was shot in the back. He powered down and fell on Gia. She pushed him off and grabbed his morpher before getting up.

"Two," she said to Noah.

"One," he held up Emma's morpher. "That's all of them. We should get back. Octoroo said he didn't want to wait long."

Gia nodded and Jordan watched as the Rangers disappeared into the woods. When they were gone, he rushed out of his hiding place and over to Emma. He helped her sit up and she coughed.

"What could have happened?"

"I don't know," he held her warmly as Troy walked over. The red Ranger sat in the dirt, groaning because of his back.

"I tried, but I couldn't hurt her," Troy looked apologetically at Jordan and Emma, although he wasn't really sure what he was apologizing for – having to raise his sword against Gia or having not fought back which allowed her and Noah to get away.

"Octoroo," Jordan said, "Noah mentioned Octoroo. Does that mean anything?"

"Octoroo?" Troy nodded his head, "Octoroo was one of the monsters in Panorama. I lived there for a while when the Samurai Rangers were active."

"Serena?" Emma asked. All she knew was the identity of the white Ranger. Troy nodded his head.

"Octoroo wasn't seen much," Troy nodded, "And if my dreams are right, he was mostly a behind the scenes kind of guy. He came up with plans and then had monsters fight for him. He was the brains behind a lot of very dangerous plots."

"Didn't the Samurai defeat him, though?" Emma asked. "I mean, they must have if they saved the world. They wouldn't have left one guy walking around?"

"From what I've seen," Troy said, "the Rangers defeated their big bad Xandred and used a seal to keep the other monsters from reappearing into their world. It should have worked.

"Should have?"

"That's kind of the key word," another voice said. Troy, Emma, and Jordan looked up as a group of adults stepped into view. Troy was surprised to see he knew them all. Serena stepped forward.

"We came as soon as we could," she knelt beside the Megaforce Rangers, seeing they looked hurt. Mia and Kevin were with Jake already, tending to the unconscious boy to see if he needed a hospital or would be fine after a little rest.

"Wait, if Serena's here, then that means…" Emma looked at the rest of the team, "Mike? Emily? You're…"

Mike nodded his head, "It was best if identities were kept secret."

"Our Gap Sensor went off," Lauren announced. Troy held his head. All his friends from Panorama – all the senseis at the Shiba's Dojo were the Samurai Rangers. He felt stupid for having not seen it before. It was so obvious to him now.

"Lauren?"

"Sorry, Troy, but it's like Mike said, it was best if identities were kept secret."

"Did you know about me? I… I told you my dreams…"

"Back then, we were just as weirded out as you," Jayden said. "But once the Megaforce Rangers did appear, in the city you lived in no less, Lauren and I kind of had our suspicions."

"You didn't tell any of us about him, though," Antonio pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. Jayden shoved his fiancé lightly.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" Troy asked.

"Our Gap Sensor went off," Lauren explained. "We saw Sanzu Water readings and a Nighlok reading coming up on the map here in Harwood. This is our mess, so we thought we'd help you come and clean it up."

"So, these guys are Samurai Rangers?" Jordan whispered in Emma's ear. She nodded her head. It seemed that was a part of his memory Jordan hadn't yet retrieved. He should have known about Serena. When Jordan got his answer he looked up, "Sweet."

"So then Octoroo…?" Troy asked the Samurai as he tried to get up to his feet. He was still sore from when Noah had shot him in the back. "It's true?"

"What's true?" Jayden asked. Troy shrugged his shoulders.

"Something's happened to two of our friends. They did this. They stole our morphers. Jordan says they mentioned an Octoroo…"

"We kind of never destroyed Octoroo," Emily looked up at Jayden, "I always kind of assumed he went down with the ship."

"It makes sense he would find a way back," Mia announced as she and Kevin joined the group while they dragged a sore, but awake Jake. "Octoroo's smart."

"We should find somewhere else to hide," Lauren announced before she saw the bushes move. At first she worried the rest of the Megaforce Team would come back to finish off what they started, but then she thought it was too soon. She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned, "Alyson Parker, I thought I told you to stay home."

Ally stuck her head out from the bush, "Sorry?"

"Mama!" Terran suddenly ran out from the bush and he jumped into Serena's arms. The white Ranger took her son and then glared at the bush.

"James…"

The former coach poked his head out. Serena saw he was also holding their newborn daughter. James saw her glare darken and shrugged, "I couldn't leave her at home."

"Wait, I asked you to babysit my twins!" Emily cried. James turned to Ally with a guilty look. She sighed. Suddenly, Storm jumped out from the bushes. If Storm was here, then so were the twins. Emily caught her dog's leash and then glared angrily at her brother in-law, "I'm going to kill you in your sleep."

"You were babysitting Riley," Kevin said to Ally. She sighed again.

"Riles, you can come out now."

"Why did you do that?" Riley stood up in the bushes and threw her hands in the air, "I could have won!"

"We aren't playing hide and seek."

"You're playing a dangerous game," Mia growled at her daughter, and then at the two people who were supposed to be looking after the extended Samurai family.

"To be fair, neither of us could sit back while you guys returned to action," James tried to defend his choice. "We both know the risk, and we'll keep the kids safe. We just want to be close… in case."

"You couldn't have left the kids with Ji and Kate?" Antonio asked. Finally, and Antonio hoped this was it for surprises, Ji and Kate popped out from the bushes.

"If it's any consolation, I know a guy," Ji said. "We could find a place to stay for the night. If your teammates have already attacked you here, then it's not safe."

"Glad we tagged along now?" Ally asked as she looked at Lauren, "We know a guy."

"We're talking later," Lauren shook her head. Ally pouted.

"I love you?"

"That's the problem…"


	3. A Second Chance

It wasn't the nicest place, but it was safe. Jordan had a look around the house as he followed the Rangers inside and frowned.

"It's a bit run-down," he commented and hoped he didn't sound too ungrateful. By all means, he shouldn't even have gotten involved in Ranger business. The fact that the Rangers were letting him stay and willing to keep him safe, despite everything they had to worry about, was more than enough for him. Still, he could dream of a nicer safe-house.

"We stopped maintaining it after the Nighlok were defeated," Ji announced as he cleared away a few spider webs, which Jordan noticed made Jayden shutter. "We never thought we would be using it again. But all four walls are standing, and it's out of the way."

"Believe me, it's not what we're used to either," Mike told Jordan. He set Felix down and let the kids and Storm play together in the living room while the Rangers got together in the kitchen. They all needed to be on one page about what had happened and what needed to be done. Having two Ranger teams meant there were a lot of people. Bigger groups were harder to control than smaller ones. Not only that, but the Megaforce team was down two Rangers. The Samurai, Troy, Jake, and Emma needed to come up with a way to get them back on the right side.

Meanwhile, as the Samurai were filling the Megaforce Rangers in on their battles against the Nighlok, and the threat Octoroo posed to the world if his plans succeeded, Lauren was outside with Ally. She wanted to put a shield around the house to keep it safe from Octoroo, just like how the Shiba House had been protected from the Nighlok by Symbols. Lauren also wanted to talk to her girlfriend.

"You shouldn't have come."

"Lauren…"

"James knows about the wars. He lived with us at the Shiba House. He knows what to do, he can think on his feet, he's even been trained by Mia's grandmother to protect the kids. I'm not happy he's here, but at least he knows what he's getting into."

Ally sat on the porch steps. She held her head in her hands, "I know what I'm getting into. I lived in Panorama when…"

"Ally, there's a difference between being there and being involved. Nighlok are merciless. Octoroo's especially dangerous."

"The wobbly squid?"

"He's big and slow, but he's not dumb. Ally, if he wants you dead he's got the means to do it. Octoroo's smart, he's…"

"I'm not worried about Octoroo or what could happen to me."

"What about what could happen to me?" Lauren asked. "Ally, you're here now. I know you're going to try your best to stay out of the way, but I couldn't let anything happen to you. If Octoroo finds out you're here, and if he knows what you mean to me…"

"I'll stay in the house," Ally promised, "He won't know. Besides, isn't Jayden the leader? Aren't you just here as back-up? Jayden's going to be out there battling, right? So Octoroo won't be targeting you… right?"

Ally noticed Lauren's face darken. She shook her head, "You… you lied?"

Lauren sighed and took a seat next to her girlfriend, "I didn't want you to worry. Ally, last time I let my team down."

"So? It all worked in the end…"

"Jayden gave up his entire life to protect me. He trained just as much as I did, and put himself in harm's way more times than I can count. I only had one job, and I couldn't even do that. I let my team down, I let him down, and I let my father down. I can't put my little brother in danger again."

"You want to lead the team. You want to be the red one?"

"You know there can only be one. Jayden and I can't both be morphed at the same time. I know it can't make up for the failed Sealing Symbol but at least I'll have done what was asked of me if I can lead the team in the battle that defeats the Nighlok once and for all."

"You're doing this out of pride? Lauren, no one cares about that! You've made your father proud, I know you have. Jayden's not angry at you for what happened…"

"I'm doing this for myself. For my team. I've put everyone through enough, and last time I didn't get the chance to make it up to them. I know my team now, I can be the leader they need me to be, and I can finally do my job and keep my little brother safe."

"Serena's letting Emily fight!"

"Emily's got a morpher. If Jayden and I could both morph, we'd fight side by side. But we can't. If one of us has to take a risk, I'd rather it be me."

"Have you talked to him about this?"

"He's agreed to let me take the lead. He knows I need to do this."

"And he's letting you?"

"He promised he would have my back."

"That still means you're the target. And with you as the head of the Shiba Clan, Octoroo knows you're the one to beat. You're twice the target."

"As it should be," Lauren nodded. "Ally, whether you like it or not, I was born for this. I'm the leader. It killed me last time to let my team take all the hits for me. I've got to step it up. I can't ask them to fight my battles anymore."

"This sucks," Ally put her hands on her stomach, "Here I was worried when I thought you were just back up. Now I know you're on the front lines? You're the one to beat."

"Hey, I am pretty good," Lauren took her girlfriend's hand, "And I've got a great team. You've seen them train. You know they'll keep me safe."

"Yeah, but I know you, too," Ally moved her hand away from Lauren's. "I know why you lied to me."

"Ally…"

"You're not going to let them keep you safe. If something's dangerous, it's going to be you risking your life."

"Als," Lauren wrapped her arms around her girlfriend, "I'm sorry."

"I don't want to lose you, Lauren."

"You're not. Octoroo's smart, but we've always found a way to beat him before. At least, the others have, and they're all here now. We can do this."

"At what cost? Octoroo's got nothing to lose this time. You always suspected he wanted to see Xandred fall, but he was too afraid of him to do anything drastic. Now that Xandred's gone, Octoroo's got all the power. He can do whatever he wants."

"I'm going to be fine," Lauren promised her girlfriend with a kiss on the cheek. "We're thinking the worst and that's not good. I'm going to head inside and see if the others have come up with anything yet. Promise me you'll stay inside the shields no matter what."

"Yeah, whatever," Ally muttered. Lauren gave her another kiss before she walked inside. Ally sighed. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a ring. At that very moment, Jayden stepped out. He took a seat beside Ally.

"Lauren walked in looking a little upset. I guess she told you how it was really going down."

"You're going to let her take your place as leader?"

Jayden nodded his head, "It's hard to explain, Ally. I don't like it either, but if something happens, Lauren would be happier knowing she took the fall and no one else. My sister's been through enough."

"Has she even thought about the people she would be leaving behind? How it would make them feel if something happened to her?"

"She asked me to take care of you if anything should happen," Jayden nodded. "Ally, Lauren can be a little cold sometimes, but you have to know you mean everything to her, right? She's thought of everything. You just… you need to trust her."

"But I'm scared."

"Nothing's going to happen, and if it did, you need to think of Lauren. Mom died to protect her. Dad died for her. I put my hold life on hold for her. My team risked their lives for her. Enough's enough."

"Yeah, but…"

"We're going to make sure she comes back to you," Jayden wrapped his arms around Ally. "You're going to get your moment," he pointed to the ring and then kissed her cheek. "Welcome to the family."

"I know I didn't ask for permission but…"

"Ally, you're practically family already. You don't need permission," Jayden chuckled. "Why don't you come inside? It might help you feel better if you hear what the plan is going to be."

"Or it might make my stomach turn."

"Nothing's going to happen to Lauren. She the best of all of us. She didn't train for seventeen years to be second string."

"I guess."

"Come inside," Jayden stood up and offered his hand, "Sitting out here won't do anything."

Ally nodded and took his hand.


	4. Octoroo's Potential

When Noah woke up he felt sick and he felt like he was moving. The ground swayed before he could open his eyes and his stomach swayed with it. His eyes opened suddenly and he sat up to heave.

"Sea sick?" he heard Gia asking him and he nodded his head. It wouldn't be the first time he threw up on a boat. His parents and Jake's parents had rented a cottage one year, and Noah had discovered he couldn't go boating with the rest of his family when he threw up overboard. Jake had been kind enough to stay back with him at the cottage while their parents took a tour of the lake.

But then Noah realised he wasn't supposed to be on a boat. He looked around and realized he was. It confused him, and it showed on his face as he turned to Gia.

"Just don't get sick," Gia rolled her eyes, "I'm not cleaning it up, and I'm not sitting in it either."

"What happened?" Noah asked and held his stomach. It didn't help with the sea sickness, but he couldn't think of anything else to do except find a way off the boat.

"I don't know," Gia sighed. She looked out the side of the boat and shook her head, "I don't remember. I don't remember coming here. I don't remember an attack…"

"Last thing I remember is… whining about no internet."

"You won't be getting any here either," Gia told him. Noah nodded his head and then started to pat himself down for his morpher, only to remember he had left it in his bag at camp. Then he noticed Gia shaking her head.

"A giant squid came in. He somehow got all the morphers."

"All of them?"

"I counted five."

"So then where are the others?"

"I think it's just us. Us and Robo-Knight, wherever he is."

"Just us? Us like… the others are…?"

"If we find a way out, we'll search the ship for them," Gia said, "but I've got a bad feeling."

"Yeah," Noah suddenly gagged, "me too."

"Aren't you the sea Ranger?"

"Don't remind me," Noah got up to walk to the side. He didn't want to be sick on the ship. Whoever had taken him and Gia surely wouldn't be happy to see a mess on board. But when he tried to walk around, he felt something tug on his ankle. Looking down, he say his foot was chained to the floor.

"Don't try to fight it," Gia warned him. "If squid-face notices you tried to escape… just don't."

"Are you okay?" he asked and for the first time he noticed there was something on Gia's arms. It looked like a burn, but not the type of burn he was used to seeing.

"I'll be better once we're off this ship."

"I've picked locks before," Noah made his way over to Gia and started to work on the chain around her leg.

"Noah, I said…"

"Whatever he tries to do to us, it can't be any worse than not doing anything," Noah looked up at Gia and continued to work on her chain. "The others could be counting on us or we could be all that's left. Either way, we need to get out."

"Then work on your own chain…"

"Gia, you're the better fighter. If I get you out, you can stop that squid while I work on myself. Trust me; I know what I'm doing."

"Just work fast and don't let him catch you," Gia warned Noah.

-Megaforce-

"When is this octopus freak coming back?" Jake asked and clenched his fists tightly as he sat on the beaten couch of the Samurai's safe house. Troy shook his head.

"You better hope it's not for a while."

"I'm only a little dizzy," Jake frowned. "Besides, this octopus has my best friend and my girlfriend, and he's done something to both of them. I want to fight."

"Octoroo's technically a squid," Emily said as she sat down beside Jake on the couch and she gave him a frozen bag of peas for his head.

"What?"

"Technically, he's a squid. You'll know it when you see it."

"Why is he called Octoroo?"

"Same reason Antonio's squid Zord was called the Octozord?" Emily shrugged. "But that's not important. Octoroo has Noah and Gia, and I'm assuming you're not dating Noah so…"

A smile appeared on the Samurai's face. Jake nodded his head.

"I don't think it's really official," he said. "I mean, Gia and I haven't talked about status or anything, but we've been on a few dates already so… I guess, yeah. She's my girlfriend."

"When this is over, I want details." Emily smiled. "I knew things would work out for her. I knew you were a good guy! I just knew it!"

"Yeah, well, it wasn't easy," Jake said. "And it'll all be for nothing is that squid-faced octo-whatever doesn't show himself soon."

"Or if Noah and Gia don't turn up with him," Troy added. "Octoroo could have just needed them to get our morphers. If we don't see them again soon, something might have happened to them."

"Bad guys don't tend to keep people they don't need," Emily nodded her head sadly. "But… um, there's something we need to talk to you about. All four of you."

Emma and Jordan heard from the other side of the room and walked over. They sat on the couches with Jake, Troy, and Emily.

"What's going on now?" Jordan asked. He thought all the serious talks were over with. The Rangers were all caught up on everything they needed to know about Octoroo and Gia and Noah. However, judging by the look on her face, Emily had something serious she wanted to say.

"Look," Emily bit her lip nervously. She hated that the others had elected her for this job, but the fact of the matter was that she looked the least threatening. The Samurai needed that to explain the next part of their plan to the Megaforce Rangers without having them freak out. "Obviously Gia and Noah already kicked you butts."

"Obviously," Jake pulled the frozen peas away from his head. "Gia just got lucky."

"We all know that was more than luck," Emma muttered. "Gia's twice the fighter you are."

"Yeah, and Troy's supposed to be even better," Jake grumbled and looked to Troy, "Dude, I know you didn't want to hurt her, but seriously, you let her kick your ass?"

"That's the thing," Emily said. "I… um… we don't think you guys should be the ones to face your friends when they come up."

"What?"

"Well, you already said it," Emily looked at Jake, "Troy's good, but he got his butt kicked because he didn't want to hurt Gia. And Troy's probably the only person on this couch who could stand to throw a few punches Gia's way. Emma, you're her best friend, and Jake, I doubt you want to beat up your girlfriend."

"That… actually a really good point," Jake looked down at his hands. He would never imagine using them to hurt anyone he cared about – least of all Gia. Even if it was for the best, he doubt she would be able to forgive him afterwards.

"And I doubt you'd be able to hurt Noah either. Aren't you two best friends?"

"Yeah, but…"

"Troy and Emma, you both admitted to hesitating when you had to fight Noah and Gia. You're never going to beat them if you're scared to hurt them. So, you have to let us take care of that. Jayden and Kevin are two of our best Samurai. Jayden's never met Gia, so he won't have the same reservations as you, and Kevin doesn't know Noah. There won't be any hesitation."

"You're going to send out two of your best Samurai? Your _best_ Samurai?" Jake felt his stomach turning.

"They're not going to hurt your friends," Emily promised, "Not any more than they have to. They've got excellent control. You have to trust them."

"To beat up our friends?" Jake shook his head. "No way! You can't hurt them!"

"Jake, something changed them," Emma said and took his hand. "Gia knocked you out before you knew there was anything wrong."

"No! I sensed it! There was something different…"

"You didn't see it," Emma said. "I don't like this either, but something happened. Gia and Noah aren't going to hold back. If we don't… hurt them, they're going to kill us."

Jake clenched his fists again. He didn't like this plan. Emily put her hand on his shoulder.

"Jake, your team saved Quinn from Vrak. You have no idea what that means to me, Mike, and the rest of my team. The last thing we want to do is beat you guys up. If it wasn't the right thing, we wouldn't be doing it. Jayden and Kevin are going to be gentle, but they'll get the job done."

"And Noah and Gia will be hurt."

"Yeah, but if you leave them with Octoroo, they'll die, or worse," Emily looked right at Jake with desperation in her eyes. "You don't know Octoroo. You don't know the Nighlok or the Netherworld. Nighlok feed on human misery. If Octoroo's not using your friends as soldiers, and if he doesn't kill them right away, he's going to hurt them far more than Kevin or Jayden ever will."

Emily pulled her shirt down from her shoulder and turned to show her scar to Jake, "Serrator was one of the meanest, cruelest Nighlok we've ever faced. He was so bad; he kidnapped my sister and my aunt and made them do this."

"That's his name?" Jake asked as he looked at the scar. Emily nodded her head.

"Yeah. Serena and Kate weren't brainwashed or anything when they did this. They knew exactly what they were doing and who they were doing it to. To this day, anytime Serena sees this scar she gets upset. Octoroo might not be as cruel as Serrator, but he doesn't have to be to make your friends lives miserable. If Serrator can make my sister and my aunt torture me like this willingly, then just imagine what a Nighlok can do to your friends. Even if they're hurt, they're safest here. You have to trust us."

Jake nodded his head and sighed. He looked over at Emma, who already seemed to agree with Emily.

"Alright," he said. "But I don't like it."


	5. Ranger Vs Ranger

The ship rocked back and forth. The motion made it difficult for Noah to try to pick at Gia's chain, but he felt he was getting somewhere. He hoped progress was being made. The chains weren't like what he was used to but there had to be some way to open them. He knew if he was allowed enough time, he'd be able to figure it out. There wasn't a puzzle in the world he couldn't solve.

"Stop, stop, stop," Gia said and grabbed his hands. She pushed him away. "I hear something."

Octoroo opened the door and walked into the room. He was small, but he was fat, and so he wasn't subtle when he walked on the creaking ship. Noah moved his hands away from Gia's chains in time to avoid being caught. Unfortunately, that didn't mean anything, as Octoroo came in carrying two pails. He dumped the first over Noah's head, showing him in red water, and the second over Gia's. The two Rangers screamed out in agony as the water burned at their skin. Octoroo waited until the pain subsided just enough for their cries to calm.

"These are yours," Octoroo tossed Noah and Gia each their morphers. Noah was surprised, but accepted the gift. He thought maybe Octoroo had made a mistake, and didn't understand these were morphers. He had seen Serena's Samuraizer, it was small and discrete – the complete opposite of his morpher, which was bulky and didn't bear a resemblance to any other piece of technology humans, had come up with so far. He was about to activate it when Gia snatched it from his hand.

"Don't be stupid," she said and then glared at Octoroo, "You did something to them, didn't you?"

Octoroo nodded his head, "I've got eight pests I need you to take care of. The Samurai Rangers; have you heard of them?"

"If you think we're going to…"

"You won't have a choice," Octoroo shook his head, "Next time you morph; you'll be forced to fight your teammates. I've put a seal on your morphers to ensure you'll do exactly what I want, and you better get the job done the first time around. You'll only get one chance."

"To kill our teammates?"

"Only this noodle freak is going to die, Noah," Gia reassured him. She tossed her morpher aside, "I don't want it."

"Then I guess I'll have to go after one of your friends," Octoroo said with a shrug of his shoulder. He was playing an uncertain game with the new Rangers. He didn't really know them or what they were capable of. He had only recently been able to come back to Earth. However, he had spent centuries battling different teams of Rangers. He had always observed one thing – they were all close. They all cared for each other. He knew he would hit on something that would motivate the two before him to do exactly as he asked. "Maybe the red one, he seems strong."

Noah was already shaking his head. He was miserable as Octoroo's captive; he couldn't escape just to put someone else in this position. He felt bad enough that Gia was stuck with him. Had he not complained about the internet, she wouldn't have gone with him to get more sticks for the fire.

Gia growled at Octoroo, but she was harder to crack. She wasn't about to bend to his will just because he threatened to do something.

Octoroo pushed it. She had to be especially close to one of her teammates. "Maybe a little pink would brighten this place up…"

Gia lunged forward, but she was stopped from reaching Octoroo by the chain. She fell forward on her face. After hitting the ground, she smashed her fists into the wooden floor in anger. She looked up at Octoroo.

"Don't hurt her."

"So you'll do it?"

The blue Ranger was already nodding his head. Noah knew he was the weakest fighter on the team. If he had to face his teammates and eight Samurai he would certainly lose. Even if that meant death for him, it was still the best option he had right now. There was no telling what Octoroo would do to him if he refused, and Noah wasn't willing to put a friend in danger.

Gia shook her head, "You can't get me to do anything unless you have me morph. Even without my suit and weapons, if you lay a hand on her, I'll be eating calamari for breakfast, lunch, and dinner."

"Gia…" Noah reached out and grabbed her arm. She sat up and glared at Octoroo.

"I'm not doing anything you ask, and if you threaten any of my friends, I swear, I'll…"

"Black. Your black Ranger," Octoroo smirked and suddenly he saw Gia's defences drop. The blue Ranger also seemed a little more worried at the mention of the black Ranger being the next target.

Gia couldn't let anything happen to Jake. He had done so much for her already and he had taken enough abuse from her and her past. He didn't deserve this hell.

"Don't worry, Rangers," Octoroo said as he gave Gia her morpher back, "By the time we're all done, you won't remember anything of what happened. The seal won't let you. You'll return to captivity, and you can blame me all you want for the death of your friends.

Gia's eyes started to water. This wasn't fair at all. She couldn't fight her friends. She couldn't hurt them after everything they had done for her – but she couldn't let a Nighlok get his hands on them. She wouldn't let them suffer in this hell.

"Now, morph, and kill anyone that stands in your way. If you return and you have failed, there will be severe consequences waiting for you. Do not disappoint me."

"Gia?" Noah looked to the yellow Ranger sadly. Gia nodded her head.

"It's all we can do," she said and then morphed first. When her suit was on, she could feel the dark energy flowing through her veins. Before she knew it, she wanted to kill her teammates – her friends – her family.

She led Noah out of the Netherworld. Using a Gap, they were transported back to Earth – to an open quarry just outside the city. Octoroo made it clear he wanted the Rangers destroyed, and this would be the best place for a battle.

Noah stood to her right and looked out at the empty battle field before him, "I've got your back. Go in there and give it everything you've got. The more blood, the better."

"Who's in charge here, four-eyes," Gia snapped. "Octoroo may want us to battle it out here, but I say we take the fight to the Rangers. Take them on by surprise."

"And that'll work… OW! what was that for?"

"Didn't see that one coming now did you?" Gia rolled her eyes, "C'mon, the faster we get moving, the sooner we'll find them."

Gia took a few steps forward, with Noah just one pace behind her, but she didn't have to go far before she saw two figures, one blue and one red, walk up to the battle field. She let out a laugh.

"Two of you? That's it? We'll take you out easy!"

The Samurai, Kevin and Jayden, shook their heads. Kevin spoke up, "Don't count on it. You may be friends and teammates, but we know what's important."

"You're coming home with us," Jayden said, "Whether you want to or not."

"No," Gia said and summoned her Tiger Claw.

-Megaforce-

Jake paced nervously after hearing the Samurai Rangers' Samuraizers go off. He was worried. He was very worried.

He had agreed to let Jayden and Kevin challenge Gia and Noah to a duel. He said it would be okay if Gia and Noah got a little beaten as long as they were brought home safe and sound, but he had made it obvious he didn't like the plan. He knew it was for the best, but he was worried something would go wrong.

The fortunate thing though, was that when the Samuraizer went off, it was only Noah and Gia who appeared. Somehow they had triggered a Gap Sensor, but Octoroo had done something to them, that much was obvious. Until they were home so they could be looked after, that was the least of anyone's concerns.

"If we get them back to safety, then all we have to do is worry about Octoroo," Lauren promised Jake when she saw him pacing. "Without your friends in his hands, we can do whatever we have to in order to destroy him. It'll be okay."

Jake couldn't help but worry.

-Megaforce-

Jayden heard metal hit metal as his Spin Sword clashed with Gia's Tiger Claw. She was a tough opponent, Jayden would give her that much, but if this had been a duel to the death, he would have already won by now. He wasn't holding back too much. He could see she was hurting from wounds he had inflicted, but he didn't want to hurt her too badly. Deep down, somewhere underneath the spandex, was a good person.

He heard a blast going off somewhere near him and glanced over for a moment to see Kevin getting back to his feet. Noah wasn't as strong as Gia, or anywhere near as strong as Kevin, but he was a strategic fighter. With a Bowgun at his command, he wouldn't let Kevin get anywhere near close enough for a sword to be effective. Fortunately, a sword wasn't the only weapon in Kevin's arsenal. He summoned his Hydro Bow and shot back at Noah.

"Sorry, kid," he said as he prepared another attack, "It's for your own good."

Jayden breathed a sigh of relief. Kevin wasn't the brains of the team like Noah, but he was a smart fighter. Technique and strategy had always been important to him, and it was paying off now. Jayden didn't have to worry about Kevin. The blue Samurai had his battle under control.

Unfortunately, the time Jayden spent making sure Kevin was okay was time wasted for him. Gia pulled her Tiger Claw away from his sword and swiped at him. Just like a real tiger's paw, her weapon was powerful and heavy. It knocked Jayden down and left him dizzy momentarily.

Kevin came to his aid, like always. Noah was on the ground, reeling from a barrage of arrows, so Kevin took the time to shoot at Gia. He knocked her down long enough for Jayden to get his bearings back and get to his feet. Kevin ran over to Jayden.

"It's got to be a spell," he said. "You know, like a Nighlok Symbol or something. Octoroo's got a bunch of patches on the ship. He can use them to do whatever he wants."

"We've got to bring these guys back," Jayden lifted his Spin Sword and looked over to Noah and Gia, who were picking themselves up and readying themselves for another round. "Their teammates are counting on us, and I'm sure, somewhere deep down, they are too."

"Look, I didn't want to do this," Kevin put his hand on Jayden's shoulder, "But we're going to have to finish the job, like you did with me."

Jayden nodded his head as he thought back to when Kevin had been turned against the team. He hadn't liked it, but he had fought with everything he had, knowing Kevin needed to lose in order to be saved. He had been able to do so without harming his friend too much, but it hadn't come without a cost. Kevin still carried a few scars from that day.

"Anything you want," Jayden commanded, "As long as they're breathing at the end and we can take them home."


	6. Bringing Them Back

There was a troubled atmosphere in the house as the Rangers all waited on news from the battle. Kevin and Jayden had gone as soon as they saw Noah and Gia's signals appear on the map, and now it was a fight to see who the better Ranger was. The Samurai needed to win, but if Octoroo did do something to turn Gia and Noah against them, then they weren't going down without a fight. That wasn't just a concern for the Megaforce Rangers, but the Samurai as well, who to varying degrees had already made connections to Noah and Gia.

Mike noticed he hadn't seen Jake in a while, and stepped outside to see if he could find the younger man. He spotted the black Ranger kicking a ball around in the yard and walked over to him. The ball rolled to his feet and Mike picked it up. Jake rolled his eyes.

"It's a soccer ball. No hands."

"I do that too," Mike said. "I get active when I'm worried."

"Gia and Noah mean a lot to me," Jake said. "Noah's easily my best friend. I don't know what I'd do without him."

"And Gia?"

Jake sighed and shook his head, "She's been through enough already."

"We chose Jayden and Kevin for a reason. They don't know Gia and Noah very well, but they're easily the two best people to fight them. They aren't going to take things too far, I can promise you that."

"They'll do what they have to do, and I get it," Jake said. "I'm just… Noah's smart. Noah's the smartest. He may not be the best fighter, but he's… he's like Octoroo. He can be dangerous when he wants to be. He won't go down easy."

"And Gia?"

"Gia's amazing. She's strong, she's smart, she's beautiful. And even though she'd probably disagree with me, she's not a quitter. She's never giving up. She's never going down without a fight, without giving it her all."

"You're worried that means…?"

"I'm scared that means Jayden and Kevin might have to really… really hurt her. And… and I know it's for the best. I know… I know she'll be okay. I know no one wants to hurt her, and no one can, but if she doesn't believe that…"

"It doesn't matter?"

"No."

"You can't worry about the things you can't control. I'd tell you I trust Jayden and Kevin with my life, but I'm pretty reckless," Mike chuckled. He gave Jake a pat on the shoulder, "If it were Emily instead of Gia or Noah, I'd easily be pissed. I'd want to be out there, trying to bring her home, but it would be Jayden and Kevin, and you know what?"

"What?"

"That would comfort me. Kevin's my best friend. I've already asked him to keep an eye on Emily and the twins should anything happen to me. I know he'd keep her safe, and I know he'd go out of his way, all the time, to keep her happy. I know, it would be okay. Kevin's not your best friend. You don't trust him like I do, but… just… try not to imagine the worst, kid. Your friends are in great hands. I swear."

"What about Jayden?"

"He grew up as a Samurai. Honour's a big thing. He's not doing anything more than absolutely necessary."

Jake nodded his head. He took his ball back from Mike and squeezed it to manage his stress. That was when he saw Kevin and Jayden returning, carrying the limp bodies of his friends. Noah and Gia were in a bad way. Jake saw burns, cuts, gashes, and bruises covering their bodies and they were out cold. Nothing looked good. His stomach flipped. Noah and Gia were the two most important people in his life. He couldn't bear to think of what he would do without them.

"What…?"

"They'll be okay," Jayden promised and hurried inside the house with Kevin right behind him. Mike and Jake followed, both worried.

"Take them upstairs," Kate and Ji ordered and followed each of the Samurai up to the bedrooms. Kate went inside with Jayden and Gia, while Ji followed Kevin and Noah.

Emma had a worried face as she looked over at Jake. He knew she was worried too. Then he turned to Troy. His leader, who was usually able to keep a straight and focused expression no matter what, also seemed concerned.

"They'll be okay," Mia promised the younger team. "It's nothing we've not handled before."


	7. Bacon And Squid

Of everyone, Jake felt he had the most to be worried about. Jayden, Kevin, Ji, and Kate had been upstairs with Noah and Gia for a long time. It was early in the morning now and they had come home in the early evening.

Jake had seen the damage done. He had seen his best friend and his girlfriend covered in injuries and limp in the Samurai's arms. He knew it had to be done, he knew the Samurai were trying their best, but there was never any certainty. Something could always happen. It had happened several times to him before already. People he cared about had been promised health, only to end up dead moments later.

He paced back and forth in the living room. He clenched and unclenched his fists in panic and anger. No one could say anything to calm him down.

Finally, Ji walked down the stairs. He had some blood stains on his shirt and pants and he looked tired. He had been working hard upstairs, Jake was sure. He turned to the Samurai's mentor with a hopeful look.

"I've done all I could for your friend. He regained consciousness for a few minutes while we cleaned him up. He is resting now, but he asked if you could sit with him tonight.

"What about Gia?" Jake asked. Ji shrugged his shoulders.

"I have no idea," he said, "I hoped Kate was already down here."

"Gia put up a tough fight," Kevin said as he came down the stairs. "We had to use a little more force. Nothing lethal, I swear. She should be okay."

"Should?" Jake frowned, "Should isn't…"

"Jake, maybe you should be with Noah," Troy put his hand on the black Ranger's shoulder. "He trusts you the most. I'm sure it'll help his recover if he knows you're by his side."

Jake nodded his head. Noah always came first. He was concerned about Gia, and nothing would keep him from worrying, but he hadn't forgotten his best friend was suffering. Noah had stood by him through the good times and the bad, and though they hadn't always seen eye to eye, Noah had always been the greatest and most supportive friend.

He wouldn't leave Gia alone, though, and turned to Emma. She nodded her head, her promise to him that she would keep an eye on Gia and let her know, the moment she woke up, that Jake was around if she needed him. With that, Jake followed Kevin up the stairs to stay by his best friend's bed side.

Now it was Emma's turn to worry as she bit her thumb and leaned closer into Jordan for comfort. It was only a few minutes, but it felt like hours later when Kate and Jayden finally came down the stairs.

"She's still out," Kate announced, "But everything's looking good."

"Can I see her?" Emma asked. Jayden waved her over and took her upstairs. He opened the door to Gia's bedroom and left her alone. Emma walked to the bedside and took Gia's hand.

"I don't know how you do it," she whispered. "I'd have just called it quits by now. I'd have called it quits a long time ago if I were you."

"Baba!"

Emma felt something hit her leg and looked down. She recognized Quinn and gave the little girl a sad smile. Quinn approached the bed and hit it hard.

"Bababa BA!"

"Where's your mommy?" Emma asked. Emily had to put the twins to bed a while ago, and it seemed she wasn't quite successful in doing so yet. Emma tried to move the little girl away from the bed. She didn't want Quinn to see Gia in her state.

But Quinn did get a look. Over Emma's shoulder she saw Gia. She rested her head on Emma's shoulder and let out a little sigh. Emma rubbed her back.

"I feel the same way."

Emily finally came into the room and let out her own sigh when she managed to find Quinn. Though Emma didn't feel much like laughing, she couldn't stop herself from chuckling a little bit. It seemed Quinn had a habit of disappearing on her mother.

"You rascal," Emily took the baby from Emma's arms, "Always finding trouble. Maybe there is more daddy in you than I thought."

Emily looked to Gia, and then Emma, "How is she?"

"We'll see. She's home."

"Always a good thing," Emily promised. "I've got to get little monkey to bed."

Emma nodded and let the yellow Samurai walk out of the room before turning back to Gia. She took a seat on the bed and stayed in silence for a moment before she heard a little pitter-patter on the floor. She looked to the door and saw Quinn running into the room again – this time, with a yellow blanket in her hand.

She ran straight for the bed and threw the blanket on. Half of the blanket landed on Gia. Quinn let out a sigh of content and looked up at Emma with a smile. Emma felt her heart warm. She smiled at Quinn and then picked her up again.

Emily came into the room and looked frustrated at her daughter.

"Two seconds. I take my eyes off this monster for two seconds to get a clean diaper and she runs off."

"She's a good kid," Emma said. Emily smiled.

"I don't doubt that. She's got Mike's heart for sure. C'mon, Monkey, let's get changed and into bed. Mommy's tired!"

-Megaforce-

Gia felt herself starting to come to slowly. She felt she was surrounded by something soft and warm and it made her feel safe. She could also smell food was cooking. Pancakes, maybe even bacon if her nose was right. Breakfast foods meant it was morning.

Everything felt good. Everything felt safe except for the weight on her chest. It was pushing down on her hard and made it very difficult to breathe. Suddenly, something grabbed her nose. She opened her eyes with a start. It took a minute to focus, but the first thing she saw was a baby's face. She recognized the face almost instantly.

"Quinn?" she sat up and took the baby in her arms, though Quinn wasn't much of a baby anymore. She had grown considerably since the last time Gia had seen her.

"There you are!" Emily then hurried over and scooped Quinn up, relieving the baby's weight from Gia. She looked down, seeing the yellow Ranger was awake, "Sorry. I guess she remembered you."

"Where's Noah?" Gia had a look around. She was in a bedroom – one she didn't recognize at all.

"He's safe," Emily promised. "He's downstairs eating pancakes. He already told us what he remembers."

"With a giant squid?" Gia asked. Emily nodded her head.

"Yeah, Octoroo."

"Whatever," Gia answered. She grabbed her head, which hurt a lot, and massaged her forehead gently. Then she looked up suddenly, "Wait a minute!"

"Yeah, we have some explaining to do," Emily said, "Downstairs, you're going to meet my team. Apparently, you know most of us already."

"Your team?"

"The Samurai Rangers," Emily said and Quinn clapped her hands. Emily chuckled and cuddled with her daughter while she spoke with Gia, "That giant Squid that kidnapped you is named Octoroo. He found a way out of the Netherworld and he's making the most of it, I guess. He took you and your friend and…"

"Can we talk about it later? I smell bacon. You didn't let Emma cook, right?"

"Is your pink Ranger a lethal chef too?"

"Vegetarian."

"Lucky," Emily muttered as she thought back to the days where Mia couldn't cook. She would take vegetarian options over Mia's failed meals any day. "Antonio cooked. He's amazing."

"It's pretty hard to screw up bacon in my eyes," Gia shrugged. "Only Emma knows how."

"Do you need help walking?" Emily asked. Gia shook her head and left the room. Emily followed her with Quinn in her arms. When they made it down the stairs, Emily set Quinn down and let her daughter run off to play with her cousins.

Emma, upon seeing Gia up and about, jumped in for a tight hug and squeezed Gia's tender muscles. Gia pushed her best friend away.

"Are you okay?" Emma asked as she worriedly inspected Gia. "Jayden and Kevin said you were covered in the Sanzu Water stuff."

"It's pretty poisonous," Jake said as he came over with a plate of pancakes and bacon. He set the plate down in front of Gia and then took the seat beside her. "If you don't feel well…"

"Bacon…" Gia took a strip from her plate and ate. Noah must have been right about the missing time. She couldn't remember the last time she had eaten something, but her stomach was telling her it had been a while. Jake noticed Gia seemed starving, and so he moved a pancake from his plate to hers. Emily noticed and started to subtly nudge Mike in the ribs.

"See! See! See!"

"I thought Mia was into the lovey-dovey stuff," Mike chuckled as he hugged his wife close.

"She's rubbing off on me?"

Serena sat down at the table, "The important thing is that you're both okay," she said to Noah and Gia before she gave them a smile. "Sorry about the surprise Samurai Family reunion craziness which you're about to witness, by the way. We're weird."

"We're not weird," Antonio shook his head, "We're family."

"We're a weird family," James said. He got up from the table, "You guys can get Gia caught up on the whole Nighlok thing. Sammie left daddy a present."

Riley tugged on Gia's arm. The yellow Ranger looked down at the little girl.

"Grown-ups are the weird ones," she whispered.

"Why do you have wings and a pink Ranger mask?" Gia asked and pointed to Riley's costume fairy wings and the mask.

"I'm a fairy princess Samurai," Riley said. "Duh."

"Yeah, grown-ups are weird," Gia rolled her eyes and took another bite of bacon. "Hey, you're the kid that flipped me!"

"Gia Mia!" Riley beamed brightly, "You're Gia Mia! You're a Power Ranger? Uh-oh, that's not good. Octoroo's going to kick your butt."

"Go play Samurai fairy princess or whatever," Gia turned the little girl around and gently shoved her out of the kitchen.

At that moment, Lauren cleared her throat and she stood in the doorway. She was holding up what looked like an IPad, "Octoroo's not happy."

She turned the IPad over and showed footage from the News. It seemed Panorama City was already flooded with water, and Harwood County was starting to see more and more of it at a faster rate. Lauren turned off the IPad, "He must know his little soldiers are back where they belong."

"What do we do?" Troy asked. "Octoroo's still got my team's morphers. We'd love to help, but…"

"We're also down half a team," Jake said. He saw Noah and Gia were glaring at him for suggesting they sit out a battle. He shook his head. "I don't want to hear it from either of you. You've been poisoned with water that burns you! Need I say more?"

"But…"

"You're sitting out until those burns heal a bit more, or we get all our morphers back," Jake said. "Whichever comes last."

"It's probably good we go for the morphers anyway," Lauren suggested. "If we want to make sure we defeat Octoroo once and for all, and quickly, we're going to need as many Rangers as we can get."

"Not to mention, it'll be helpful to have a team of Rangers with a Megazord in case he has a growth spurt," Mia pointed out. "We don't have Zords anymore."

"Don't remind me," Emily muttered sadly.

"My team can recover the morphers," Lauren said. "I might be able to come up with a Symbol that'll make it safer to enter the Netherworld, but I can't promise it'll last."

"We know exactly where the morphers are," Noah pointed out as he looked at Gia.

"Tell us where, but only after I find a Symbol," Lauren said. "Ji…"

"I will help," Ji nodded his head and got up from the kitchen table. He knew a lot about Symbols. It was required of him as mentor to the Samurai Rangers to be very knowledgeable about the many different Symbols that existed for each family. Between him and Lauren, they were sure to come up with something.

"What are we going to do in the meantime?" Jayden asked his sister. "Octoroo's going to destroy both cities if we don't try and stop him, and the misery it's going to cause will only make things worse."

"See if you can figure out his plan," Lauren said. "The more we know before we go in, the better the chance we have to survive."

"Survive?" Ally suddenly gasped and shook her head. "What happened to believing we can win? Now we're trying to survive?"

"Ally, it's going to be okay."

"Not if all we're doing is trying to survive! This mission's going to get you killed, isn't it?"

"Ally, I don't want to die," Lauren put her hands on her girlfriend's shoulder and looked straight at her. "Just stay calm, and no matter what, don't believe the worst."

"But if you're talking about just surviving then…"

"I can't be overconfident. Why don't you help Ji and me come up with a Symbol."

"But I don't know…"

"Sometimes that helps," Lauren took her girlfriend's hand and led her upstairs.

James leaned into Serena after coming back from changing Samantha's diaper, "I wasn't that bad when I first got involved in the Samurai thing, right?"

"When you first found out about the Samurai thing?" Serena tapped her chin, "Hmm, well, you made me quit my job, got really angry, called Terran a Nighlok bastard, called me a Nighlok fucker. You told me I was breeding monsters and that I was a menace to everyone around me. Oh, you also broke up with me. Well, technically you didn't say it at the time, but it was implied."

"My reaction suddenly doesn't seem so bad, does it?" Jordan whispered in Emma's ear.

James frowned at Serena, "You remember all that?"

Serena took her daughter from James' arms and smiled. James watched her leave the room and bit his lip nervously.

"Wives never forget," Emily then whispered into his ear from behind, causing him to jump. But when he turned around, Emily was gone.

"I hate this family," he grumbled.


	8. Coming Home

Ally bit her lip as she, Lauren, and Ji walked downstairs to the living room and had the Rangers all gather around. They had come up with a Symbol that would protect the Rangers from the Netherworld for about an hour. It was long enough for them to get on Xandred's ship, grab the Megaforce Rangers' morphers, and get home.

But Ally knew that was just the start. While Octoroo was busy tearing up the city, the Rangers would go onto the ship. They would collect the morphers and come back. That part was dangerous enough. If the Symbol didn't work, or if the Rangers didn't make it back in time, they would be trapped forever. Ally would never see Lauren again.

Step two wasn't dangerous. It was presenting the Megaforce Rangers with their morphers. That was foolproof.

Step three was challenging Octoroo. That was the really scary part. Ally couldn't bear to think of Lauren running out onto the battle field. She knew her girlfriend was one of the greatest Samurai, but Lauren was also the biggest target. The Sealing Symbol hadn't worked on Xandred, but there was no sense in not trying to use it on Octoroo. If he Rangers couldn't kill him, they did have that little trick up their sleeve.

Unfortunately, they wanted something more permanent, which meant the fight would be longer and harder. To prevent their children from having to go to war, the Rangers wanted to see Octoroo destroyed. They would have help in the form of the Megaforce Rangers, but that didn't ease Ally's worries at all. The Samurai would give the battle their all. Lauren felt she had a debt to pay to her teammates, and would gladly take any fall required to ensure Octoroo's demise and the Rangers' safety. Ally worried for everyone, but she was terrified this would be the last she would see of Lauren.

"It'll be fine," Lauren promised her after she presented the plan to the others. She knew her girlfriend was worried. It was the first time Ally had a loved one involved in a war and it was a pretty risky one too. Octoroo was smart. He wasn't fast or strong, but he made up for that with his brains and his plans. For all Lauren knew, she could be playing right into his hands.

"Fine?"

"Yeah," Lauren nodded. She took Ally's hand, "The war ends here with Octoroo's death. I promise, that's how it's going to turn out."

"And only Octoroo, right?" Ally asked. Lauren smiled and nodded her head.

"Then, maybe, after that, we can start planning something special?"

Ally let herself smile a little bit. Something special was something good. It was something to look forward to, and at least it meant Lauren was confident.

Lauren touched Ally's arm, "You know, not a lot of people find someone special on their first try."

Ally chuckled. Lauren was her first girlfriend, but she wasn't her first partner. However, she knew she was Lauren's first. Lauren liked to brag about it, even though Emily, Antonio, and Jayden could all say they found their true love on their first try as well.

Then Lauren dropped down on one knee. Gasps filled the room. Ally was shocked. She wanted this, but she had planned on asking Lauren. It was a surprise, albeit a pleasant one.

"Lauren…"

"I know it's not the most romantic proposal," Lauren said, "But you've been so worried, I wanted to do something special to show you I'd be coming back from this war. So… uh, Jayden?"

"Oh, right," Jayden had gotten caught up in the moment, he had forgotten Lauren had asked him to hold the ring. She had been so nervous about the proposal, and worried that Ally would feel the box for the ring during a hug or a cuddle, so she had asked her brother to hold it. Jayden was the only person to know.

Jayden pulled out the box and then smiled at Ally, "I told you, you didn't need permission."

"It's not legal yet," Lauren held out the ring for Ally, "But I don't care. Will you marry me?"

"I… I… I…" Ally stammered and then reached into her pocket and pulled out her own box, "I was going to ask you."

"I know," Lauren smirked. "You're cute when you're nervous. And a little forgetful. I saw the receipt for the ring in the kitchen."

Ally smiled before she dropped to her knees. She let Lauren slide the ring on her finger and then pulled her fiancée in for a deep kiss.

Mia finally felt it was appropriate to coo excitedly.

"That was so cute!"

"Uh-oh," Kevin groaned. He looked across the room at Riley, who had the same worried look on her face.

"Not this wedding crap again," she grabbed the twins' hands and took all her younger cousins upstairs, "Let's get away before mommy goes psycho."

"You have to let me plan the wedding!" Mia joined the couple on the floor and hugged them both tightly. "I've got a million great ideas for destination weddings if that's what you want. Or, I can do something here as soon as it's legal. Or…"

"I've got her," Kevin grabbed his wife by the arm and gently pulled her away. "Mia, this is their moment."

"I can help make it perfect!"

"Mia, settle down," Kevin wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sure they'll ask for your help if they need it."

Lauren knew to expect a little outburst from Mia when she surprised everyone with the proposal. She laughed it off and then looked at Ally, "You never answered me."

"Promise you're coming back?"

"That's what this means," Lauren said and pointed to the ring. Ally took the ring she was going to use to propose to Lauren and put it on her fiancée's finger.

"Then a reminder," she nodded, "You've got someone waiting for you at home. Don't do something stupid and of course I'll marry you."

Lauren smiled as she wrapped her arms tightly around her fiancée. Then she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Um… so this is sweet and all," Jake interrupted, "But, um, while you two are getting all lovey-dovey, our city is being destroyed… so, you know, if you don't mind…"

"Right," Lauren nodded her head. She gave Ally one more kiss before she stood up and nodded to her team, "C'mon, guys. Octoroo's distracted with the destruction of the city. We've got one hour to get in and out."


	9. Ghosts

As soon as Mike stepped foot in Octoroo's ship he felt a chill travel up his spine. He looked over at his teammates, seeing they too were frozen in place for just a moment. They needed that moment to process where they were.

"This is where Xandred spent centuries hiding?" Antonio asked. "I thought it would be nicer."

Emily and Kevin had already been on the ship once and so were able to get to looking for the morphers faster. Gia and Noah had told them exactly where they could be found, so the yellow and blue Rangers started there. They found a small crate on top of another bigger one and Kevin smashed it open.

"It's empty," he frowned at Emily. She sighed.

"He must have moved them. Figures he wouldn't be dumb enough to leave them unguarded."

"We'll have to search the rest of the ship," Lauren said then she looked at her Samuraizer, "Alright, we've still got fifty minutes. Everyone split up. We'll cover more of the ship that way."

"C'mon, Em," Mike called his wife over and then they walked into one of the back rooms on the ship. Lauren and Antonio moved to the front. Kevin and Mia stayed in the main room, while Serena found a set of stairs that led further down.

She made her way to the lower level of the ship carefully as a strange feeling bubbled in her stomach. While she had never been on Xandred's ship before, everything about the Netherworld felt familiar to her. Dekker had never been a part of Xandred's army, but Serena knew he had been on the ship from time to time. She also knew Dayu had lived on this ship with Xandred for centuries. She was glad that part of her life was gone, but when she was on the ship, she felt like it was all going to come back.

Below the deck was dark. Serena used her Symbol Power to make a flashlight, and that was the only light she had. Nervously, she checked the corners of the room first, assuming that if Octoroo was trying to hide the morphers, he would keep them out of the way.

But there was nothing in the corners. Serena shook her head to clear her mind and continued to aim the flashlight around the room. She was looking for a table, or a drawer, or a container. She wanted something that could hold or hide the Megaforce Ranger's morphers.

Then, she wanted to get the hell off the ship.

As she searched the dark room, she tried to move around quietly. She wasn't sure what to expect, and wanted to be able to hear even the smallest sound that meant someone was coming. Because of the silence, though, she heard the sound of a chain rattling. It caused her to jump as she turned to the source of the noise and pointed her light at it.

A Mooger sat on the floor with his wrists and ankles bound in chains. He seemed to be in a bad way, not that Serena cared for his wellbeing, but she did grow concerned. If Octoroo could treat his Moogers this way, then what had he done to Noah and Gia? Now, it was no wonder the water levels were rising quickly.

"This place is creepy," Serena said to herself before she looked down at her Samuraizer and saw the time. She had less than half an hour before she had to leave. Now she could start to feel the tug of the Netherworld as Lauren's Symbol started to fade.

"Morphers," she reminded herself and moved the light away from the Mooger. She looked around the room again and shone the light in the darkest corners until she found a box that seemed out of place. Everything else in this room was dusty and old, but the box looked like it had just been moved. Serena smiled as she raced over and opened the box, "Bingo," she smiled when she saw three morphers resting inside, "And the creepy villain's evil basement does hold all the secrets. Time to get out."

She decided to leave the box where it was. Octoroo would surely notice the moment it was missing. But Serena did take the morphers and she created a bag from Symbol Power to hold them in. Just as she got the last morpher inside, she felt something smash into the side of her head. It sent her to the ground and gave her a nasty headache almost instantly. Serena grabbed her head and then looked up. She had dropped the flashlight on the ground when she was hit, and now it was shining on a leg. She looked at the leg and then up. All she could make out in the dark was a red face.

But she knew that face anywhere.

"Dekker?"

"Serena!" she heard stomping down the stairs as well as her sister's voice. Suddenly, the room was bathed in light. It revealed Dekker, but Serena also saw Emily charging the Nighlok. She tackled him to the ground.

Mike and Antonio rushed over to help Serena to her feet.

"Octoroo's working on something nasty," Mike explained to Serena. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an old scroll. "This guy is more genius than we thought."

"What does that mean?" Serena snatched the scroll from Mike's hand and looked it over, "Dekker 2.0?"

"You've got to admit, Dekker was a hard one to take down. Not to mention the relationships he made with us," Antonio said. "Octoroo knows he could use Dekker to throw us off our game."

"How?" Serena asked. Antonio pointed to the bottom of the scroll.

"He's using Moogers to bring Dekker to life. It's like an upgrade."

"An upgrade? You're talking Super Samurai but for Moogers?"

"Super Dekker mode," Mike nodded.

"Okay, props to the squid," Serena said just as Kevin, Mia, Lauren, and Emily were all thrown into the side of the ship. Serena remembered she had the bag of morphers already, "We can't stay here and fight. I've got the morphers, let's just go!"

"No, I…"

"Come on, Emily," Serena grabbed her sister and pulled her along as the Rangers ran up to the deck of the ship. They closed the door that led below deck and Lauren started to work on the Symbol that would take them home. Emily couldn't take her eyes off the door. She knew Dekker was down there, and all she wanted was to see him destroyed.

Serena hugged her sister, "Emily, you know it's not the real Dekker."

"I could have killed him. You should have let me."

"Emily, we're not here to fight," Serena looked at her sister, "We're here to help the Megaforce Rangers. You remember, the kids who saved Quinn? I want this Dekker gone too, but we're not here for that."

"But he'll…"

"He's not going to hurt me or Terran, I promise," Serena kissed her sister's forehead. Emily huffed, but turned around when Lauren announced she had completed the Symbol for home.

The Samurai were taken directly to the living room. They landed ungracefully in a heap on the floor.

"You're okay!" Ally cried and pushed the other Samurai aside to hug Lauren tightly. "You made it back with time to spare!"

"You're suffocating me," Lauren said and gently pushed her fiancée away. "I told you not to worry."

"Did you get the morphers?" Troy asked. Serena nodded her head and showed the Megaforce team the bag. She opened it, and gave them each their morphers.

"Of course you would be the one to find it," Gia said as Serena presented her with her morpher. The white Ranger smiled.

"I've got your back, kid."

Emily didn't want to stay for the return of the morphers. She was happy the Rangers had gotten what they needed, but she couldn't get the thought of Octoroo's newest creation from her mind. Dekker 2.0 was the perfect copy of the real Dekker, and if Octoroo could get so close, there was no telling what else he could clone from the original Dekker. She took Terran from where he was playing with his cousins and stormed upstairs with the little boy in her arms.

She went to one of the bedrooms and slammed the door. She climbed on the bed and sat down with Terran in her lap. He looked up at his aunt and saw she was crying.

"Memy sad?"

"Yeah," Emily nodded her head. Terran pouted sadly and then wrapped his arms tightly around his aunt to comfort her. Emily returned the gesture until she heard a knock at the door. She wiped her eyes.

"Go away."

The door opened. Emma walked in, "Is everything okay?"

"Memy sad!" Terran said to Emma and pointed at his aunt. "Cry!"

"I'm not…" Emily rolled her eyes, "Tattle tale."

"Did something happen? Emily, we have our powers back, now. Whatever it is, we can help."

Emily took in a deep breath before nodding her head, "Serena told you about her bad boyfriend, right?"

"It's how she got Gia to talk about Cliff," Emma answered. She took a seat on the bed. "What's this got to do with that?"

"Well… don't freak out, but Serena's bad boyfriend wasn't just some random dude she met on the street."

"Was he on the ship?" Emma asked. "You know, after hearing what happened to Gia and Noah down there, it'd probably be nice to send Cliff on a vacation for eternity in the Netherworld."

"He was on the ship… well, kind of," Emily nodded her head. "Serena's bad boyfriend was a half-Nighlok named Dekker. Jayden destroyed him a long time ago, and I thought that was it, but apparently Octoroo's found a way to make a look-a-like."

"Oh…"

"Dekker was the worst thing to happen to Serena. And I'm including her illness in that list," Emily said. She gave her nephew a little squeeze, "I mean, not everything about it was bad but… he's one of the faces I never, ever wanted to see again. I still don't like it when the others mention his name."

Emma reached out and wrapped her arms around Emily, "You don't get over that. I thought the day Cliff died I'd feel better, but I'm still paranoid he's going to turn up somewhere."

"Cliff's dead?"

"Finally," Emma nodded her head. "Now, Gia's starting to let her guard down slowly. She's still hesitant about a lot of stuff, but she's coming back."

"There has been something different about her," Emily smiled. "I mean, aside from the Sanzu shower Octoroo gave her and Noah."

"She's getting better," Emma said. "But I think I'm getting… worse. The more Gia starts to let her guard down, the more paranoid I get that it's all going to happen again. I see Cliff's face in the crowd all the time, and sometimes I worry about Jake."

"He's a good kid."

"Yeah, I know. And he's been great with Gia. It's just… hard. I get it. I couldn't imagine what I would do if Vrak decided to make a clone of Cliff."

"I'm scared Octoroo's going for the details on this project. If he makes a Dekker 2.0 that acts like the original, then Serena's in trouble and Terran's in trouble, and anyone who tries to protect them is in trouble."

"You helped Gia," Emma smiled. "I'm going to help you. This Dekker clone, he's not going to lay a hand on Serena or Terran, I promise."

"No hurt, Memy," Terran nodded his head and hugged his aunt again. Emily squeezed her nephew and kissed the top of his head.

"You are a brave, strong boy now," Emily told him. "What are you going to do if you see meanie Dekker?"

Terran got to his feet and then stomped them. He pointed to the air, "Me no want meanie man!"

"I taught him that," Emily said to Emma as she pulled her nephew in for another hug. "Anytime he hears the others mention Dekker's name, he knows to do that. I think it's going to kill him the day he finds out James isn't his real father."

"It's Dekker?"

"Terran's nothing like him," Emily shook her head. "On most days, I forget. Terran's the sweetest, happiest kid I've ever met. I'm so thankful he took after my side of the family."

"Well, nothing's going to happen to him or Serena," Emma promised. "We'll stop your ghost."

"And if you ever need to talk about yours, I'm here."

"Thanks," Emma smiled.


	10. Prep Time

The big battle against Octoroo was about to begin. Ji and Kate, the Samurai's mentor and the Earth Samurai's guardian respectively, were looking over the Megaforce team. They were making sure Gia and Noah's injuries weren't too bad for a battle, and that the Megaforce remembered everything they needed to know about not just Octoroo and the Nighlok, but Dekker as well.

James stood with the allies as he told Ally and Jordan especially what to do in the event of a worst case scenario. It made Ally very nervous to know there were plans for the worst. She didn't want to lose Lauren, but she knew there was no turning back. The fate of the world was resting on the Samurai's and the Megaforce Rangers' shoulders. This wasn't a time for Ally to be selfish.

Troy had a hard time focusing. While Lauren walked around the yard of the safe house to be sure the shield was strong in case of an attack, Troy followed her around.

"So, all this time, all that training…"

"I am sorry, Troy," Lauren nodded her head. She and Jayden had both taken Troy under their wing when he had trained at the dojo, but Troy had been Lauren's first student. He had spent the most time training under her. Now that he had a minute, he wanted to get answers from her. "Back then, you were just a civilian. I couldn't tell you anything."

"What about my dreams? I dreamed of you."

"It was freaky, but we all had things to work through after the war," Lauren said. "A lot of people were dreaming of the Samurai Rangers…"

"And the new team? My team? This future stuff."

"Hey, you're the psychic," Lauren said. "How was I to know you were dreaming of a team that didn't yet exist?"

"What about after?" Troy touched Lauren's arm and looked pleadingly at her, "I get the secret identity thing but… I was kind of thrown into the deep end here. You're my sensei. When I moved, you said you'd always be there for me."

"Jayden and I had our suspicions," Lauren said. "That wasn't enough proof to head to Harwood and put our identities at risk. Besides, everyone had a different style of leadership. You needed to find yours for yourself."

Lauren grabbed Troy's arms gently and smiled at him, "If it's any consolation, my team's been keeping a very close eye on you guys since you popped up. We're ready to help at a moment's notice. If it did look like you were getting in over your head, we were going to step in."

"What about after this?" Troy asked. "Don't I get advice about leading a team or…"

"Do you think you still need it?"

"I don't know," Troy shrugged his shoulders. "Lauren, everyone's friends but me. Emma and Gia have known each other since they were born, and Noah and Jake met in kindergarten. How am I meant to compete with that?"

"You think that's hard?" Lauren asked. "At least you all became Rangers at one time. When I was forced to lead my team, they had already been working together for my brother for two years. Try prying your way into that solid bond."

Lauren ruffled Troy's hair and smiled, "You're gonna be great, kid. You're a natural leader, Troy. Stop doubting yourself, and don't compare yourself to me or Jayden. We're different teams. We've got different styles."

"It's just… hard," Troy sighed. "I do have confidence. I know I'll find a way to pull it off, but… it's hard always being confident."

"You wanted advice? You don't _always_ have to be confident. You don't even always have to be leader. The best thing you can do for your team is show them your weaknesses. If you're worried about something, if you don't think you can do the job as well as someone else, let them help. Not long after I took my rightful place as leader of the Samurai, I gave it up. I'll always be the head of the Shiba Clan but at the time, I knew the best thing I could do as leader was stand down. I let my little brother take the lead and it was the best decision I could have made. He wasn't born to lead, but he sure as hell was good at it."

"Any more advice?"

"Yeah, try not to die," Lauren smirked. "The house is safe. Jayden and the others should be fine to wait here while we battle. You can tell your friends they have nothing to worry about."

"Jordan's going to be safe."

"Safer than we'll be," Lauren nodded. She wrapped her arm around Troy as she walked him back into the house, "Look, after this is done, I think I can do you and your team one little favour."

"What's that?"

"Let's kick Octoroo's butt first, then I'll tell you."

-Megaforce-

"You're not going to do something stupid, are you?" Jordan knocked on one of the bedroom doors upstairs after the safety and preparation speeches in the living room. Emma had gone to the bedroom to get ready for the battle with Mia, who had promised to work with her on the battle field. All the Rangers had teamed-up, mostly by colour.

Still, a teammate couldn't put Jordan at ease. He walked into the room and looked at Emma, "I just got you back."

"I just got you back," Emma said. She patted the space beside her on the bed and invited him to sit. "Mia was just telling me about her training. She's been a Samurai since she could walk. I think I'm safe."

"I've got your girlfriend's back," Mia promised. "I'll make sure nothing happens to her. My family's been at war with the Nighlok for centuries. This battle's just like riding a bike."

Emma smiled at the comparison and then turned to Jordan, "I'll be smart. We're all going to be smart. We're not going to fall for Octoroo's tricks. And as long as we don't, he should be easy to beat."

"Octoroo's fat and slow," Mia said, "The danger comes from his plans. If we play it right, we should be fine."

"Just… be careful, okay?" Jordan pulled Emma into his arms. The pink Ranger nodded her head.

"This isn't my first battle, either. I know what I'm doing. I'll be fine, Jordan. You just have to stay in the house while I kick butt, and everything's going to be okay."

-Megaforce-

"So, water from Earth is the best medicine for that red hell water?" Noah asked as he looked up at Kevin.

"It's why we've got to stay in the background," Kevin nodded his head. "By now, there are probably pools of Sanzu Water everywhere. I'm going to make it rain as much as I can so the Sanzu Water isn't as strong, but we've got to keep an eye on the others. If they get splashed, we need to clean them off. The more we wait the worst the burn is going to get."

Noah looked down at the burns that covered his skin. He didn't need to be reminded. He could still remember how much the Sanzu Water had burned him when Octoroo dumped it over his head and left him to dry off slowly. This time, he would have his Ranger suit to protect him, but even his Ranger form could only do so much against the red water.

"So, if I see someone get splashed, I use one of my cards and splash them with water?"

"And, anytime you're not doing that, splash anything that isn't human," Kevin nodded, "Our water is just as poisonous to Nighlok as their water is to us."

"Good to know," Noah said. "I've got a squid I'd love to soak."

"And look, kid, if you get tired at all, just let me know," Kevin gently put his hand on Noah's shoulder. "Don't try and be a hero. We don't need any martyrs."

"I'll let you know as soon as I've had enough," Noah promised with a little nod of his head, and then he looked up at Kevin, "But I'm not going to stand back if Octoroo starts threatening my teammates."

"Kid…"

"They're counting on me. They're my friends. No matter what, I'm not letting them be destroyed by a giant squid."

"You're a good kid. It's no wonder you were picked for blue. You're smart, you're loyal," Kevin leaned in and whispered, just in case the others were listening, "and, between you and me, blue is secretly the best colour. Red is just a glory hog."

"Troy's not like that."

"Just wait until you get a cool new weapon or a power up," Kevin said. "My team has a Super Samurai mode. Only one of us can use it at a time. Do you think the distribution of power was equal?"

"It would only be fair…"

"It would," Kevin chuckled, "But it wasn't. Reds like their toys. Our job is to make sure the red Ranger doesn't let the power go to his head. Secretly, we're in charge. Blue is best."

"Well, I guess I can't argue with that last part," Noah smiled. "I mean, we are going to be the ones healing everyone else during the battle, right?"

"Without us, the Sanzu Water would take them out probably in minutes," Kevin smirked. Suddenly, he felt something wet hit his back. He turned around and saw Mike and Jake were by the sink in the kitchen. Mike was hiding something behind his back.

"Shouldn't you be talking to your teammate?" Kevin asked the green Ranger with a frown.

"Hey, Jake and I talked," Mike said. "He knows what he's doing, right kid?"

"This is going to be an awesome battle."

"And I already told him black and green were the best colours," Mike said. He turned to the sink for a moment, then turned back around and launched a balloon at Kevin. When it hit the blue Ranger it exploded, soaking Kevin in water.

"Mike, this isn't a time to be playing. At least I'm giving my kid confidence."

"Oh, loosen up," Mike waved off the blue Ranger and then he turned to Jake, "I thought having a kid would teach him it's okay to have a little fun once in a while. Turns out, even Riley can't unwind him."

"Hey, I know how to unwind when I'm with Riley," Kevin said and then he felt something hit is foot. He looked down and saw an unpopped water balloon on the ground, with little Felix looking down sadly at it. Then the boy looked up at his uncle. He smiled a guilty smile and then wobbled over to his father.

"That's my boy!" Mike scooped his son up in his arms. "It'll pop next time, kid. You've got to throw them a little harder."

Noah walked over to Jake while the two Samurai bickered about the water balloons.

"They remind me of someone," Noah whispered to Jake. The black Ranger shrugged.

"I don't see it."

"This feels familiar, Jake, don't you…" Noah trailed off as he was splashed in the face. "You were hiding a balloon behind your back, weren't you?"

"Duh."


	11. A Great Battle Part I

It wasn't hard to find Octoroo. He was a smart Nighlok, probably the smartest of them all. He had not only managed to survive the war against the Samurai, but come back from it stronger. He had already flooded most of Panorama City while searching for the Samurai, and now he was laying waste to Harwood County.

The Rangers, led by Lauren, raced out into the city. Already most of the people had evacuated, especially in this part of town where the water level was rising. Lauren knew her team would have to be careful, and made a nod to Emily and Serena. They each traced a Symbol that created a large, solid, platform of earth above the water level, which made a safe ground for the Rangers to fight on.

"Octoroo, this fight ends here!" Lauren shouted as she drew her Spin Sword. "You should have stayed in the Netherworld where you belonged!"

"And do what for the rest of my life?" Octoroo asked and with a snap of his fingers the Rangers were surrounded by Moogers. "Master Xandred wasn't smart enough to devise a plan that would effectively claim the Earth. Serrator let his ego get in the way. I'm the rightful ruler!"

"We'll see about that," Troy said and turned to his teammates. He was surprised to see another addition to his team. He gave a nod to Robo-Knight, "You're on our side."

"This water is poisoning the Earth," Robo-Knight nodded his head. "If this squid is the source, I want to see it destroyed."

"Question is, are you working with us?" Gia asked him. Robo-Knight gave her a thumbs up.

"With you."

"Wait," Antonio walked over to the robotic Ranger in examined him closely, "There's a dude in this suit, right?"

"100% robot," Noah smiled proudly behind his helmet. Antonio let his jaw drop.

"Robot? Like… oh, dude, I have to partner up with this guy!"

"Partner up with whoever you like," Lauren smiled to the gold Ranger, "As long as we finish off these Moogers and destroy Octoroo for good…"

"Not so fast, Rangers," Octoroo shook his head. "I believe you've already met my newest creation."

Behind Octoroo, the Dekker 2.0 walked up and stood tall. It was a terrifying sight for the Rangers who had known Dekker, but they had been prepared for this. They had seen Dekker when they had gone to retrieve the Megaforce Rangers' morphers. They knew Octoroo would pull this stunt.

"Had you not stolen the morphers, this would have been a big surprise!" Octoroo shouted. He then pointed to the blue and yellow Rangers, "And you tricked me!"

"I guess you're not as smart as you think," Gia replied.

Octoroo growled, but he snapped his fingers again and Dekker charged.

"You guys handle the Moogers," Lauren shouted and then turned to Troy. She gave her partner a little nod, "We'll take Dekker."

Troy agreed, and followed his sensei into battle. He had been told Dekker was a powerful opponent and so he knew to be careful, but he trusted the teachings of his masters, more so now that he knew Lauren was a real Samurai and a Ranger.

Lauren was the first to challenge Dekker, and she matched his attacks blow for blow. She tried, but she couldn't get ahead of him. This Dekker was fast, and she wasn't fortunate enough to have faced the real one enough to know what to expect from him. All she knew was the original Dekker had made it his mission to kill her little brother.

With that in mind, she landed a blow across his chest. Dekker let out a cry of pain. He stumbled backwards, but didn't let the first hit distract him for too long. Aggressively, and quickly, he struck Lauren down. He swung his sword first to distract her, and then smashed his fist into the side of her helmet. As she lay on the ground, trying to recover, Dekker readied himself to stab her with his sword.

Troy jumped in at this very moment. He used his own sword to block Dekker's attack and then he pushed the Nighlok back.

"I've faced worse than you before," Troy taunted. In his personal life, he didn't like to taunt his bullies, but when he was a Ranger facing a tough opponent, he liked to get inside their head. It made them move just a little too fast to think their actions through, which meant he would make a mistake. Troy was ready for it.

At the back of the floating battlefield, Kevin pointed his Hydro Bow to the skies and fired. Instead of arrows, water came down in little droplets. It wasn't enough, but it was pure. It weakened the Moogers when it touched them, which gave the others a huge advantage.

"That is so cool," Noah smiled. He summoned his Shark Bowgun, "Let's see what I can do."

He pointed to the skies and fired. In the air, as soon as his blast reached its highest point, he saw a shark appeared. Suddenly, a huge wave of water came down and smacked the Moogers, taking many of them out.

"Wow, keep at it, kid. Let's see who can do the most damage!" Kevin challenged Noah and fired another round of arrows into the sky. Noah smiled.

"Challenge accepted."

A little ways off, Mike swung his Forest Spear. It couldn't take the Moogers out as quickly as the water from Kevin's and Noah's weapon, but it was effective enough. He swung around, striking several Moogers at once in the stomach. Near him, Jake swung his axe, and managed to take off the head of a Mooger.

"Keep at it, kid! You're doing great!"

"Okay, that was gross," Jake looked at the decapitated Mooger. He was distracted for a little too long and didn't notice a group of them coming up behind him. Mike, fortunately, had him covered.

"Leaf Storm!"

Jake saw a barrage of leaves coming his way. He covered his head and ducked. He heard some cries from behind him, so once the leaves passed he looked over his shoulder. He saw the Moogers on the ground and turned back to Mike.

"Thanks."

"Take it from me, kid, you need focus," Mike reminded him. "The Moogers are the bad guys. If you don't kill them first, they'll kill you."

"Yeah, okay," Jake nodded his head. He gripped his Snake Axe tightly, "Alright, you fish-faced freaks. Who's next?"

Further down, Emma clutched her stomach and stumbled back towards Mia. She felt she was putting up a fair fight, but the Moogers continued to swarm her. She felt like she was in over her head.

"Emma, you're doing great," Mia put a hand on her shoulder and then attacked some Moogers with a swing of her fan.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly the strongest fighter," Emma said.

"You don't need to be the strongest," Mia said. "Remember who is back home waiting for you."

"Jordan."

"You don't want to let him down, do you?" Mia asked. Emma shook her head. She had promised Jordan everything would be okay, and that she would do her best. She still had some fight left in her. She was going to use it.

But then she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She knew she was fighting in a neighbourhood with plenty of houses, but she hadn't yet recognized where she was. The destruction Octoroo had caused was enough to almost make her own street unrecognizable.

"The Morans!"

"Who?"

"My parents!" Emma felt her heart racing when she saw Gia's house. Sanzu Water was high enough to flood the first floor, and with the Moogers pressing forward, it wouldn't be long until the house was destroyed in the fight. If the Morans hadn't left, they were in huge danger.

And Emma doubted they would leave. They knew she and Gia were Rangers. They knew the girls wouldn't be running away when the Sanzu Water appeared. And if Emma had learned anything about the Morans, they weren't going to leave the girls behind.

Octoroo, from his vantage point, noticed the pink Rangers seemed distracted by a house. He called up a group of Moogers to specifically destroy it. He had no clue what the home meant to the Rangers, but if it was enough to distract them, then it was enough to cause them misery.

Only it couldn't. Seeing the house was under attack, Emma felt herself catch her second wind. She had no idea if the Morans were inside, but couldn't risk anything happening to them.

"Mia, you have to help."

"I've got your back," Mia answered. Emma used her Phoenix Shot to blast at the Moogers and clear a path for herself to the house, and then stood guard in front of it.

"Your parents live here?" Mia asked. Emma nodded her head.

"I can't let anything happen to them."

"Nothing will," Mia promised. "Sky Fan!"

Back with Dekker and the red Rangers, Lauren was kicked to the ground and had to roll to the side quickly to avoid a painful stab. Dekker was moving too fast for her to keep up, and it seemed he wouldn't grow tired like she and Troy. She could feel her muscles were starting to get sore, and Troy had a hard time catching his breath. The side of his helmet was cracked, which meant he had took a strong blow to the head. It was only a matter of time before he had to tap out. Lauren hoped that time would come after Dekker was gone. She could handle Octoroo on her own after that.

"I'll do what my original could never do," Dekker said. As Lauren tried to get to her feet, he kicked her down and placed his foot on her stomach. She swung her Spin Sword, but he blocked it with his own and then ripped it from her hands. "I'll destroy the red Ranger and prove I am the greatest warrior to ever exist!"

Lauren looked around for Troy, but saw he was still on his knees and trying to get up. The kid was strong. He was an amazing Ranger, but this fight against Dekker even had her beat. Her only hope was that he could find the strength to pull himself up and get to her quickly. She saw Dekker raise his sword and closed her eyes.


	12. A Great Battle Part II

Lauren had never gotten the chance to fight in a great war before – not as the red Samurai Ranger and the head of the Shiba Clan. Her time as a Samurai had been short when she knew she wasn't the true leader of the team, and the Sealing Symbol – the one thing guaranteed to rid the world of Xandred for good, failed. This was her chance to help her teammates save the world and protect their families. She could make it up to them with this one battle. Everything they had trained for. Everything they had fought for. Today, it was all going to be worth it.

But she found herself locked in a fierce battle against Dekker, which left her on her back with his foot pressing into his stomach. Troy was too hurt to help her out, and she needed him to come fast. Dekker raised his sword and Lauren closed her eyes. This was the end.

Suddenly, the weight of his foot disappeared from her stomach. She looked to where Troy had been and saw he was still there, and being helped to his feet by Serena and Emily. The girls looked tired, which Lauren had expected. Not only were they battling the Moogers, but they had to keep a large piece of rock above ground so the Rangers had a safe place to fight. That much Symbol Power was wearing.

"If Troy didn't stop him," Lauren said to herself and turned around. Gia and Dekker were locked in a fierce battle now.

"Go stop Octoroo!" Gia shouted as she blocked Dekker's Sword with her Tiger Claw. "I've got this jerk!"

"We'll stop the Moogers," Serena said to Lauren as the red Samurai joined her, Emily, and Troy, "It's about as much as we can handle."

"You and Emily, go," Lauren nodded her head and the girls ran back to the fight. Lauren looked at Troy, "How are you holding up?"

"Just give me a minute to catch my breath," Troy said. Lauren put her hand on his shoulder.

"Watch my back. I'll get this fight with Noodle-face started."

"He'll see you coming," Troy looked up to where Octoroo was watching the fight.

"There's a reason he's up on that rooftop," Lauren said. "Octoroo's a shitty fighter. Let him focus on me while you sneak in and get close."

"But Lauren…"

"That's how it's going to work," Lauren ordered. Troy saw his sensei wasn't messing around and gave her a little nod to show he would follow her command.

"Take cover," Lauren told him. Troy hurried off, away from the battle with the Moogers and away from Lauren. When he looked over his shoulder, he saw Lauren had her Samuraizer in hand and had started to trace a Japanese Kanji.

"The Sealing Symbol?" Octoroo called when he saw what Lauren was attempting. "You think that's going to be enough to hold me?"

"Lauren, you haven't practiced that Symbol in over a year!" Kevin called to her. He looked to Noah and saw the younger blue Ranger had the rain under control so he ran over to Lauren, "If you don't get it perfect…"

"Octoroo's got to go," Lauren said. She traced another stroke and powered down. The Sealing Symbol was draining, and Kevin was right to be concerned. If it was left incomplete it would never work, and if she got it wrong, even the tiniest bit, it could turn around and hurt her. It was a huge risk, but she needed to help Troy get close enough to Octoroo to fight him.

Troy saw the squid was distracted with Lauren and saw this was his time. He jumped off the rock platform and landed on top of a car below. The water level was rising very quickly at this point, likely because two whole cities were now suffering terribly.

Troy jumped from the roof of the car onto the roof of the garage. Octoroo was standing on the very top roof on the second story of this house. Troy needed to get up there.

He took out a card from his belt and activated it with his morpher. He felt himself getting lighter before he slowly started to rise.

A little ways off, Jake saw his chance to repay Mike a favour, and launched his Snake Axe. It was imbedded into the chest of a Mooger and the creature exploded before it could bring down its sword on the green Ranger. Mike turned around, saw what Jake had done and smiled. He swung his Forest Spear around which destroyed the rest of the Moogers in the area.

"Thanks for the help, kid."

"It was fun," Jake smiled. A wave of water suddenly splashed down from the sky and knocked the boys over while also washing away the bodies of the defeated Moogers. Jake got up from the puddle and turned to Noah. Though he couldn't see it because of the helmet, he knew his best friend was smirking.

"Oops," Noah teased, "Were you standing right there? Well, I guess that's payback for the water balloon!"

Mia drew a Symbol in the air and blew some Moogers away from the house, but it wasn't enough to stop them. Fortunately, Antonio and Robo-Knight came to help. Antonio moved too quickly for Mia to see, while Robo-Knight blasted at anything that moved that wasn't gold. Somehow, despite all the shots fired, none of them hit Antonio.

"You're good," Mia said to Robo-Knight. Antonio appeared beside the robot and gave him a pat on the back.

"The advantages of having a robot fighter."

"Yeah, advantage," Emma muttered. Robo-Knight turned to her and she rolled her eyes, "Alright, thanks for your help."

"Go look for your parents," Mia told the pink Ranger, and used a Symbol to help Emma fly into the second story window of the house. Emma landed safely on the floor inside and found herself in her room. There was no sign of the Morans.

"Joe? Vanessa?" she cried out as she ran from the room and down the hall to the Morans' bedroom. She knocked and then entered. There were still nowhere in sight, but she saw Mrs. Moran's nightstand drawer was open. It was where Mrs. Moran kept the morpher Emma had given them. It was the morpher Jordan had created for himself under the influence of the chip. She looked in the drawer to see if she could find it, but instead saw a note.

"Stay safe, girls. The news warned us this red water was bad so we got out of here."

Emma breathed a sigh of relief and dropped to her knees. She held the letter to her chest.

Back outside, Gia was still in a tough battle against Dekker, but she refused to let him win. She swiped at him with her Tiger Claw, but that only angered him. He grabbed her by the neck.

"You think you can defeat me? I am the greatest warrior to ever walk this planet! You are just a pathetic little girl."

Gia grabbed his wrist with her hands and then smirked, "Yeah, but I've got friends."

Dekker frowned at her response before he felt a sharp pain in his back. He let go of Gia and dropped to his knees. When he fell forward, Gia saw a large, black axe was stuck in his back. She powered down and smiled at Jake. He pulled the axe from Dekker's back and held it over his shoulder.

"I told you I'd never let anyone hurt you," he smiled. Gia nodded her head.

"Good timing."

"Is that a thank you?"

"It's the best you're going to get, Holling."

"Gia," Jake smirked. She sighed and then smiled back at him.

"Thank you, Jake."

A little ways off, Kevin found he had to hold Lauren up as she put the final touches on the Sealing Symbol. It wasn't long now before it was ready to be used. Kevin could only hope it was right, and that Lauren had enough energy to give it all the power she needed.

"We could have just destroyed him," Kevin told her. "Lauren, you didn't need to do this."

"Last time, I let you all down…"

"No one cares, Lauren!"

"I'm not disappointing this time," Lauren shook her head. She completed the Symbol and then without hesitating she shot it at Octoroo. The Symbol didn't make it very far. Octoroo laughed as it fell flat.

"You Rangers are out of practice!"

Lauren fell back into Kevin's arms, unconscious. Kevin held her gently and then called over his shoulder.

"Guys, we need everyone to attack Octoroo, NOW! Noah…"

Noah pointed his Bowgun at the squid. He felt a little silly for fighting a sea creature with water, but so far his attacks had proven to be very effective against the other creatures from the Netherworld. If he could get this shot, he was sure it would go a long way to weaken the squid.

But before he could fire the attack, he saw something walk up behind Octoroo. It was red, and Noah recognized it immediately. He lowered his Bowgun.

"Stop!" he cried out to the others as they aimed their weapons at Octoroo. That was when they noticed it too.

Octoroo saw the cease fire and laughed. He didn't think to look behind him until he saw a sword rest on his shoulder.

"The problem with having other people fight your battles is that you're never strong enough to rely on yourself," Troy said. Octoroo turned around.

"Red Ranger? But how did you…?"

Troy didn't give him the time to ask. He struck once, twice, thrice until Octoroo stepped off the edge of the roof and tumbled to the ground below.

"Avalanche!" Emily screamed. Suddenly, half the rock platform disappeared and seconds later boulders appeared in the air and buried Octoroo.

"That's got to kill him," Mike said with a smile and wrapped one arm around his wife. Emily shrugged.

"I wanted to say I killed someone," Emily chuckled. "Jayden killed Xandred and Dekker, Carrie killed Serrator, and you were there to help."

"I'll be sure the squid is dead," Robo-Knight promised the Rangers as he walked to the pile of boulders.

"I trust him for that much," Jake said to the rest of his team, who sometimes had their doubts Robo-Knight was on their side. "I think Octoroo's made himself into a big enough threat for Robo-Knight to want him dead."

"You think?" Noah rolled his eyes.

"The water's disappearing," Mia pointed out to the city. She was right. The water levels were starting to fall. "That's got to be a good sign."

"We should go back," Kevin took Lauren in his arms, "Before the others worry."


	13. Samurai And Megaforce Bond

The first thing Lauren noticed as she started to come to was that there was something cool and wet on her forehead. It felt good, so she made no move to take it off. She did let out a groan, though, and slowly let her eyes flutter open. It took her a moment to adjust to the light and a little longer than that for her to make out the face of the person looking over her.

However, she didn't need to make out the face. Right away, she knew who would be by her side.

"Ally."

"They said you'd be okay," Ally threw her arms around Lauren and held her tight, "but you were so limp, I was scared."

"It takes more than some stupid Symbols to take me down," Lauren said and then let out another groan. It was Ally's signal to loosen the hug. When Lauren could breathe again she smiled, "Did we win?"

"Octoroo was too focused on you to notice Troy. Troy pushed him off a building and Emily buried him. Apparently, the cute ones like the taste of blood."

"But we won?"

"Sanzu Water is draining as we speak. Ji's got his friends checking the locations of the Gaps to see if anyone can get through, but we're pretty confident that's it. I mean, Octoroo had to make a Nighlok, so that's got to mean their numbers are thin, right?"

"And Moogers can't cross over on their own," Lauren nodded. She leaned back into her pillow and smiled, "That's it? That's finally it? We're all safe?"

"Safe and sound from the Nighlok," Ally smiled. Then she gave Lauren a light punch in the arm.

"Ow, what was that for?"

"You promised you wouldn't do anything stupid."

"I…"

"The Sealing Symbol!"

"I had to try it."

"I thought the plan was to defeat Octoroo so he couldn't come back!" Ally cried. "Lauren, Kevin told me you used up everything you had on that Symbol."

"I had to distract Octoroo. If he saw Troy coming he would have known…"

"But…"

"I knew I could do it. I had to do it."

"You're stubborn, you know that, right? Are you happy? You finally used the Sealing Symbol to help your team!"

"Yeah, I'm happy," Lauren took Ally's hand and gave her a big smile, "Now we can focus on the wedding."

Ally couldn't help but smile hearing this, and leaned in to give Lauren a kiss. They pulled apart when they heard someone clear their throat by the door. They saw Jayden, Antonio, and Troy standing. Troy seemed a little freaked out.

"It's not the gay thing," he assured the girls, "It's just… my sensei being all romantic?"

"Took me a while to get used to Ji dating," Jayden agreed with him. He stepped into the room and smiled at his sister, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm glad that's over with."

"You did a good job," Jayden said. "I don't think I would have thought of distracting Octoroo like that. Keeping his eyes on you so Troy could get close and go in for the kill. That was a good plan."

"I'm glad someone thinks so," Lauren said and nudged her fiancée playfully. Ally rolled her eyes.

"Sorry I'm not a big fan of my fiancée risking her life."

"I hope this means the end of the Nighlok," Troy said. "As much as I love being a Ranger, I'm sure I'll love it better once it's behind me."

"Moving on does feel pretty good," Jayden said. Then he gave Troy a smile, "You know, you've got a pretty solid team behind you. I heard all about Noah's big waves, how Gia and Jake defeated Dekker, and Emma protected that house with the people inside."

"No one was inside, thankfully," Troy took a seat on the bed with the others, "I do have a good team. I know we'll find a way to defeat Vrak and the mutants and the Warstar, but it would help a lot if we were Samurai like you guys. Or if we were trained for this like you."

"It would help, but it's not like your team doesn't have something going for it already," he smiled. "When I first became a Ranger, it was just a duty for me. I mean, I was raised to fight Nighlok, so I didn't put too much thought into saving the world. I figured it out after a while, that there was no point in fighting the Nighlok if I didn't try to help people and protect the planet, but it could have saved me a few disasters when I first started."

"Yeah, your team's pretty lucky," Lauren smiled. "You're regular kids, with normal families and normal lives. You're protecting the Earth for a reason. That's a huge plus."

"Yeah, I guess, but…"

"Besides," Antonio said, "After we've recovered a little from this fight, my team's going to take your team out for a few training lessons. That's got to give you guys the push you need to stay one step ahead of your monsters."

"Training lessons?"

"Think you guys can afford to stay at the Shiba House for a couple of nights?" Jayden asked. "It's got all the equipment you'll need to become Samurai just like us."

"Yeah," Troy smiled. "That should help."

"And you'll probably sleep better knowing your team can protect themselves," Lauren said. Troy chuckled. A lot of his dreams did involve something bad happening to his teammates. It was something that had worried him from the start, when he discovered he was the best fighter on the team. He knew he couldn't always be close to his friends, and was always worried something would have or had happened to them when they were apart. It would put him at ease to know they had all been trained by Samurai just like he had.

"Thanks, guys. That means a lot."

-Megaforce-

Noah typed quickly on the keys of his laptop as Kevin watched over his shoulder. On the other side of the room, Mike and Jake had set up a small game of soccer, and were currently in a competition to see who was better. Jake had the advantage. He had played soccer all his life. But Mike was also very athletic. He picked up on the game very quickly.

"So, what exactly is this program going to do?" Kevin whispered. Noah smirked.

"I've realized you and Mike remind me of myself and Jake. So I figured Mike probably annoys you just as much as Jake annoys me."

"Don't get me started," Kevin said. "I love him to death. He's like a brother to me, but sometimes, I just want to…"

"Strangle him?"

"Oh yeah," Kevin nodded. "And Felix is taking after his father. Soon, they'll be two Mikes running around."

"That'll be your problem," Noah chuckled. "But I figured I could help you get a little payback. I already got Jake back on the battle field for that water balloon incident. Now it's Mike's turn."

"Is this going to be good?"

"My last experiment turned Jordan into an evil killing machine," Noah frowned. "I hope this one is good."

"It did what?"

"Nothing," Noah said. He looked up at Kevin, "Alright, its ready. Hey, Mike, can you come here for a sec?"

Mike looked across the room and he saw Noah and Kevin wanted his help. He told Jake he'd only be a second and their soccer game paused as he walked across the room.

"What's up?"

"My laptop's acting a little funny," Noah held up the computer for the green Ranger. "Would you mind just watching it while I go upstairs and check my bag for my USB?"

"Yeah, sure. Can't you leave it on the table?"

"I need you to tell me if the cursor starts changing colours. You've really got to keep an eye on it."

"Okay. How long will you be gone for?"

"Not long. Kevin, can you help me."

"But aren't we…?"

"Yeah, come with me," Noah said. Kevin shrugged his shoulders and followed the blue Ranger to the stairs. They climbed about halfway up before Noah peeked over the railing and saw Mike and Jake were both staring at the screen.

"The cursor changes colours?" Mike said to Jake. The black Ranger shrugged his shoulders.

"I stopped asking techy questions a long time ago. Noah knows what he's doing."

On the stairs, Noah looked at Kevin, "Give it five more seconds."

"What do you…" there was a loud scream from the living room. On Noah's computer, the face of a clown appeared suddenly with the scream and it startled Jake and Mike. Both boys screamed loudly. Mike even went as far as pushing Noah's laptop off his lap, forcing it to the floor. Then the two boys jumped up. They realized they had been pranked.

"I'm going to kill you, blues!" Mike shouted. This time, Kevin took over. He smirked as he pulled out his Samuraizer and he traced a Symbol. As Mike and Jake ran for the stairs, they fell into a pool of water.

"We make a good team," Noah smiled at Kevin. The Samurai nodded his head.

"Boy I wish you guys could stick around longer," Kevin pat Noah on the back, "Nothing says it's going to be a good day like hearing Mike scream like a girl. Isn't that right, Mike?"

Kevin looked over the railing to see Mike in the pool, only the green Ranger wasn't there. Neither was the black Ranger. Kevin frowned.

"Daddy?"

"Riley?" he heard her voice from the first floor and walked down the stairs slowly. When he turned into the living room he saw Mike was holding on to Riley. He glared at his best friend.

"Let her go."

"Two pranks? Not cool!" Mike held Riley closer. Kevin knew this was all just for fun. He knew Mike would never hurt Riley. But he played the game.

"What do you want?"

"You clean my house for a year."

"You're still living at my parents' house."

"No matter. Clean my house for a year or your daughter gets it."

"Dude, intense," Jake whispered to Noah.

"My daughter's got nothing to do with this, Michael. Let her…" Kevin started to laugh. Riley didn't seem to want to play the game anymore and pulled her elbow back so that it hit her uncle in his stomach. Mike let out a pained groan and let the little girl go.

Riley turned around and crossed her arms over her chest. She huffed at her uncle, "I may be a princess, but I'm not a damsel in distress. Got it, Uncle Mike?"

Mike held his stomach and nodded his head, "Got it. Go play, Riles. Your dad and I will settle this another way."

"Okay," Riley smiled. She skipped towards her father, "I beat him for you, daddy."

"Thank you, Riley," Kevin gave his daughter a high-five and then he smiled at Noah, "Worse come to worse, just have a daughter with an attitude."

-Megaforce-

Gia looked down at Quinn handed her another building block.

"You sure love to share, kid."

"She takes after her mother," Serena said and then she tickled Quinn's stomach. The little girl giggled and then continued to play with her blocks. She didn't have the coordination to make a tower yet, but the pile of blocks was getting impressively high. "Emily used to share her toys with everyone. Even her imaginary friends."

At that moment, Felix walked over. He saw the blocks his sister was playing with and decided it would be fun to smash them to the ground. He swung his arm to destroy level the tower, giggling happily as he did so.

Quinn screamed.

"NO!" Terran came to his cousin's aid. He stood in front of Quinn and held his hand in Felix's face. "No Fewex. That bad! Play nice!"

"Terran takes after Emily too," Serena chuckled as she kissed her son on the head for having helped his cousin. "Felix is unfortunately daddy's little man."

"It's cute," Gia said as she watched the kids play.

"You feel like this is at all possible for you now?" Serena asked. "The romance and the family? Last time you and I saw each other, you were thinking of…"

"That's behind me," Gia said. She looked through the window and into the house, where Jake was messing around with the boys inside. "Jake's been really sweet. I guess not all boys are jerks."

"Nope," Serena shook her head. "A lot of them have good intentions. At your age, maybe they just have a few too many hormones."

"A few?"

"Okay, a lot," Serena smiled. "But when you find the right guy, it just works."

"Do you ever worry James is going to leave you?"

"Sometimes," Serena nodded. "I just gave birth to his daughter, though, so it'll be a while before he can."

Gia chuckled, "Where is Sammie, anyways. I didn't get much of a chance to see her last time."

"James went to change her diaper."

"Here I am," James said as he walked out of the house with Sammie in his arms. He sat down on the porch with his wife. "She's a stinker. I think that's from your family."

"Yours."

"She's worse than Terran."

"Yeah, worse than," Serena chuckled. James was about to put their daughter in her arms when Serena shook her head, "Let Gia hold her."

"Do you want to?"

Gia nodded her head hesitantly. She didn't have much experience with kids, but had learned she had a soft spot for them after rescuing Quinn from Vrak. She carefully held Sammie and smiled down at the baby.

"She's really cute."

"I hope you like the name we chose," Serena smirked. Gia nodded her head.

"Does she know about the middle name?" James asked. Serena shook her head and Gia saw a big smile grow on her lips. She frowned.

"What about it?"

Serena didn't say anything. She just continued to smile. Gia felt butterflies in her stomach, but they were good butterflies. She caught on to what Serena was getting at and felt a tug on the corner of her mouth, "Is it… it's…"

"Samantha Gia. We want her to be as strong as you when she's older."

"Without the whole bad boyfriend thing," James stated firmly and he took his daughter back in his arms. He held her close. "You understand."

"You… you named your daughter after me?"

"You sound surprised," Serena said. Suddenly, Gia threw herself into Serena's arms and hugged her tight. She started to cry in her shoulder.

Felix stopped terrorizing his sister's towers and looked on with confusion. Quinn thought it best to offer Gia another block.

Terran joined the hug and pat Gia on the back. "It okay! All better!"

-Megaforce-

Mia walked around the yard with Emma. They talked while Jordan was in the driveway, trying to put his parents' mind at ease as they worried about the floods in Harwood. His parents hadn't come back to the city with him, but they had heard all about the attack on the news and wanted to be sure their son was okay. They had no idea he had been a few miles away from the nearest flood.

Mia turned to Emma and looked on a little sadly, "You doubted yourself back there."

"Yeah, I know."

"You're a good Ranger, Emma."

"Yeah, I guess, but I… I mean, that battle was hard."

"Yeah, but you never gave up."

"I wanted to," Emma said. "For a minute, I kind of thought about just letting you guys carry on. I got tired. I didn't think I…"

"But you did," Mia put her hand on Emma's shoulder. "Okay, you're not the strongest or the smartest, but you've got a lot of heart. You remind me of Emily."

"Emily?"

"When she fights for a cause, she's all in. Nothing can stop her. She's not the strongest or the smartest, just like you, but as soon as she's got her heart in a battle, it's game over for the other guy."

"Seriously?"

"Emma, the moment I mentioned Jordan something about you changed. Then, you only got stronger as soon as you realized Gia's parents were in trouble."

"Thankfully they weren't really," Emma breathed out another sigh of relief. She was very thankful the Morans had dodged that bullet.

"You didn't know that. You fought like a real Samurai to keep them safe. You know, the others and I were going to give you all some lessons, but I don't think you really need them."

"You're just…"

"Emma, I wouldn't joke about this. Your friends and family mean a lot to you, don't they?"

"I don't have a lot of them," Emma said. "My real parents… my birth parents, I guess, walked out on me. Well, kind of. Mom's somewhere in Europe, I think, and dad's in prison."

"For what?"

"He tried to shoot Gia. He thought he would get even. He wanted to take me back to New York and the Morans wouldn't let him."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't want to go."

"Why?"

"My home is here. My… my real family is here," Emma had had this talk with so many people before, but until now they had all insisted to her that she had a family. This was the first time she said it to someone else.

"Your parents and your teammates, right?"

"I'd do anything for them."

"That's what makes you an amazing Ranger. Don't doubt yourself again. You don't have to."

Emma smiled and nodded her head. Then she looked up at Mia, "You know, you were pretty bad ass back there."

"You think so?"

"The way you took down those Moogers with just a fan…"

"A fan is a dangerous weapon," Mia frowned. "You've been talking to Antonio, haven't you? He and Mike are always laughing because my weapon is a fan…"

"It's not like that," Emma chuckled, "I've just never thought of using a fan as a weapon. It's pretty cool. But it's not like you need it. Those Moogers were terrified of you towards the end."

"Yeah, I guess so," Mia smiled.

She heard a sound from the woods and looked around with a frown. Suddenly, Storm darted out of the bushes. Before she could get far, Mia stomped on her leash. Storm whined when she realized there was nowhere to go.

"You pain in the ass!" Emily shouted as she emerged from the bushes. She glared at her dog. "You're my devil child!"

"Still having trouble taking Storm for walks?" Emma asked and recalled the last time she and Emily had met. Storm had gotten away and had pulled the stroller with Quinn inside.

"She used to be so good. Then I had kids and she's been acting out ever since," Emily scooped her dog up. "You're still my favourite dog, you know that, right?"

Storm licked Emily's face. The yellow Ranger sighed, "Whatever."

"How about we head back inside where she can't get away?" Mia suggested and pointed to the house. Emily nodded her head.

"Please. This game of Emily the Storm chaser is getting to be real old."

Storm licked her face again.


	14. Samurai Training

Troy panted heavily as the training session came to an end. It was tough work training like the Samurai, but he felt it was paying off. However, his muscles were sore and every part of his body wanted to collapse.

Jayden stood over him. Though the Samurai had defeated the Megaforce leader, there was a look of pride of Jayden's face that was directed at Troy.

"You keep practicing, and next time we met, I won't be able to keep up."

"You're just saying that," Troy jumped up to his feet and then groaned as they tried to hold up the weight of his body. Jayden shook his head.

"I'm serious. You've got potential."

"Uncle! Uncle!"

"HA!" Jake unwrapped his arm from around Mike's neck, "That's what you get for calling soccer a wimp's sport."

"You all did really well," Lauren said as she walked into the dojo. She carried a package in her hands. She held it out for Troy, "This is for your team."

"For us?"

"You helped us to defeat Octoroo," Lauren nodded. Riley was standing beside her on her left. The red Samurai put her hand on her niece's shoulder, "Thanks to you, the Nighlok can't threaten the next generation. Until you've got kids of your own one day, you'll never know how much that means to us."

On the other side of the room, Gia felt her heart warm. Though she barely knew the little Samurai, she was relieved to hear they would never have to come face to face with a war like their parents had, or like the one she was currently facing a Ranger. As long as she and her team could defeat their monsters, then the little Samurai, the kids she had a soft spot for, for many reasons, would lead happy and normal lives. Most importantly, they would be safe.

Troy opened up the package and smiled when he saw what was inside, "Training uniforms?"

"One in each of your colours," Lauren said. "There are two sets in there for each of you."

"We've rigged them with Symbol Power, so they'll fit perfectly as soon as you wear them the first time," Kevin explained. Noah had a little grin on his face.

"Symbol Power is so awesome," he told Jake, "Kevin's letting me borrow an old Samurai book on Symbol Power and the history. He says if I can manage it, I have permission to build a machine that replicates Symbol Power."

"As long as it doesn't fall into the wrong hands again, right?" Emma joined the conversation with a whisper. Hearing Noah was experimenting again with a lot of power made her nervous. She took Jordan's hand and held it tightly. Noah understood her fearfulness and nodded his head.

"I'll make sure it's only used for good."

"Good," Emma nodded.

"You guys have done us all a big favour," Lauren said and gave each of the Megaforce Rangers a big smile. "We totally owe you one."

"Another one, in some cases," Emily chipped in. Lauren nodded her head and continued.

"If you guys ever need anything, whether it's Ranger related or personal, just give us a call and we'll be right there. We'd love to retire permanently, but once a Ranger, always a Ranger."

"Try not to need them," Ally wrapped her arm around Lauren's waist and she pulled her fiancée in a little closer. Lauren leaned into her arms while she continued to look at the Megaforce Rangers.

"By the way, I know it's impossible for you guys to get away because of the Ranger thing, and I'm sure you've got school in the fall..."

"Fun," Jake rolled his eyes.

"So attending our destination wedding won't be realistic," Lauren ignored Jake's comment, "But we are going to have a party here for friends and family who won't be able to afford or have time to make it to the wedding. You're more than welcome to come to that."

"Expect an invite in the mail," Ally added.

Troy reached out his hand and shook Lauren's, "Thank you."

"Thank _you_," Lauren replied. She gave Troy a hug, "Good luck, you guys. The world is in good hands."

The Samurai walked the Megaforce Rangers to the door and said their goodbyes one more time. They waved them off as the teens walked beyond the gate and then suddenly disappeared. Jayden tucked his Samuraizer away.

"It's a long way back to Harwood," he explained as Ji shook his head for using Symbol Power, "I thought I'd give them a hand."

"Back inside, Samurai," Ji chuckled. "We've got a wedding to plan."

"Jay, Antonio, are you two sure you don't want to double up with the wedding?" Lauren offered to her brother. Jayden shook his head and held Antonio's hand.

"Not until it's legal in California. Antonio and I don't need a wedding to prove to the world we love each other."

"Neither do we," Ally said, "But, uh… you know, it's nice."

"But, I'm more than happy to help you plan a dream wedding," Antonio said with a smile as he wrapped his arm around Ally's shoulders, "You know, I have this really great band in mind. The lead guitarist has a guitar shaped like a fish."

"It's your band, isn't it?"

"I never said that," Antonio smirked.

-Megaforce-

When the Rangers arrived back at their campsite, they had a look around. Their tent and most of their camping supplies were still just as they had left them with the Samurai turned up.

"I guess this camping trip was a bust," Jake kicked the pit the girls had made for the campfire. Troy shook his head.

"I wouldn't call it a bust."

"I had a good time," Emma said, "You know, mostly after we got Noah and Gia back from Octoroo."

The pink Ranger wrapped her arms around her best friend, "Never turn evil on me again."

"You have nothing to worry about," Gia returned the hug with a big smile. Then she let out a sigh, "Our parents are probably waiting for us all at home. We should back up and get back before they think the Sanzu Water got us."

"Next time we go camping, try not discovering the evil squid," Jake teasingly nudged Noah. The blue Ranger rolled his eyes.

"Right, because that was all my fault."

"Duh," Jake teased.

Jordan sighed sadly as he stared at the tent, "I had the hardest time getting you up and I never got to enjoy you."

"Aw, is that what you tell yourself on your lonely nights," Gia whispered as she walked by him. Jordan pouted and he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Emma, I hate your best friend!"

"Sorry, Jordan. She's a keeper," Emma chuckled. "Take it or leave it."

"Yeah, Jordan, I'm a keeper," Gia stuck her tongue out.


End file.
